Can I use indexing primers from vendors other than Takara Bio USA?

Indexing primers from vendors other than Takara Bio USA, are not compatible with the SMARTer® Stranded Total RNA-Seq Kit v2 - Pico Input Mammalian, since within the workflow of the SMARTer Stranded Total RNA-Seq Kit v2 - Pico Input Mammalian, PCR incorporation of indexing primers requires proprietary overlaps with the first-strand cDNA template.Stranded RNA-seq for mammalian [...]

Do I need to use a PhiX DNA spike-in during the sequencing of the SMARTer Stranded Kit v2 - Pico cDNA libraries?

Illumina recommends the systematic inclusion of ~1% PhiX DNA to help assess the sequencing run performance and troubleshooting. If performing paired-end sequencing on two-channel Illumina sequencer consider adding 5-10% PhiX.Stranded RNA-seq for mammalian [...]

What is the smallest RNA size compatible with the SMARTer® Stranded Total RNA-Seq Kit v2 - Pico Input Mammalian?

We recommend as input RNA>100nt. Stranded RNA-seq for mammalian [...]

Is SMARTer Stranded Total RNA-Seq Kit v2 - Pico Input Mammalian compatible with RNA or cells stored in RNAlater?

RNAlater is not compatible with the SMARTer Stranded Total RNA-Seq Kit v2 - Pico cDNA synthesis, since RNAlater denatures proteins. If cells or RNA were preserved in the RNAlater, RNA has to be purified for compatibility with the SMARTer Stranded Total RNA-Seq Kit v2 - Pico cDNA synthesis.Stranded RNA-seq for mammalian [...]

Is SMARTer Stranded Total RNA-Seq Kit v2 - Pico Input Mammalian compatible with LCM and FFPE/ PFA cells?

SMARTer Stranded Total RNA-Seq Kit v2 - Pico Input Mammalian is not compatible with cDNA synthesis directly from FFPE/PFA or LCM cells. Fixated cells usually contain high level of single-stranded DNA which can be randomly primed and used as a template by the reverse transcriptase, thus incorporating genomic DNA sequences into the final cDNA library. RNA isolated from fixated cells (FFPE/PFA [...]