The molecular pathway from normal esophageal mucosa to Barrett's esophagus and on to adenocarcinoma is not well understood. Micro-RNA (miR) RNAs have recently emerged as important regulators of carcinogenesis and have not been studied in BE. We seek to confirm our ability to characterize miR expression in various tissues (esophagus, stomach and duodenum) obtained from the upper gastrointestinal tract in preparation for the study of MiR in patients with Barrett's esophagus and other inflammatory conditions of the upper gastrointestinal tract.