Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
Measuring gene expression is a fundamental part of molecular biology and genomics.
Different molecular techniques are used to analyze transcription, varying in sensitivity, throughput, and the ability to detect unknown sequences.
Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
Let us analyze the molecular techniques and match them with their specific capabilities:
(A) RNA sequencing (RNA-seq):
This high-throughput sequencing technology captures the entire transcriptome of a sample.
Because it does not rely on pre-designed hybridization probes, it can discover and quantify novel, previously unannotated transcripts.
Thus, it measures the global gene expression of both known and unknown genes.
Hence, (A) matches with (IV).
(B) Northern hybridization:
This classical molecular biology technique transfers RNA from an agarose gel to a membrane, followed by hybridization with a labeled probe.
It is used to detect the presence, size, and expression levels of specific individual RNA transcripts.
Hence, (B) matches with (II).
(C) qPCR (Quantitative Real-Time PCR):
This highly sensitive technique amplifies target cDNA while monitoring fluorescence in real time.
It is the standard method for determining the precise fold-change of specific genes relative to a reference gene.
Hence, (C) matches with (III).
(D) Microarray:
This high-throughput technology uses glass slides containing thousands of pre-printed, sequence-specific oligonucleotide probes.
Because it relies on hybridization to these pre-designed probes, it can only analyze the global expression of known genes.
Hence, (D) matches with (I).
Step 3: Final Answer:
The correct matching sequence is:
(A) - (IV), (B) - (II), (C) - (III), (D) - (I).
This corresponds to Option (B).