Folding pathways of large RNAs are poorly understood. We have addressed thi
s question by hybridizing in vitro transcripts, which varied in size, to an
array of antisense oligonucleotides. All transcripts included a common seq
uence and all but one shared the same start-point; the other had a small de
letion of the 5' end. Minimal free energy calculations predicted quite diff
erent folds for these transcripts. However, hybridization to the array show
ed predominant features that were shared by transcripts of all lengths, tho
ugh some oligonucleotides that hybridized strongly to the short transcripts
gave weak interaction with longer transcripts. A full-length RNA fragment
that had been denatured by heating and allowed to cool slowly gave the same
hybridization result as a shorter transcript. Taken together, these result
s support theories that RNA folding creates local stable states that are tr
apped early in the transcription or folding process. As the transcript elon
gates, interactions are added between regions that are transcribed early an
d those transcribed late. The method here described helps in identifying re
gions in the transcripts that take part in long-range interactions.