Sequencing and Chip Technology_Custom Services

Location: Home > Custom Services > Sequencing and Chip Technology

MicroRNA Microarray Services

Measuring the changes in the miRNA expression profile is extremely important for deciphering the biological context of differentially expressed genes. Microarray technology is a powerful high-throughput tool capable of monitoring the expression of thousands of small non-coding RNAs at once within tens of samples processed in parallel in a single experiment, thus could be used to measure the miRNA expression.

Details >>
Protein Microarray Services

Introduction Protein microarray (or protein chip) is an emerging technology that provides a versatile platform for the characterization of hundreds of thousands of proteins in a highly parallel and high-throughput way. Two major classes of protein microarrays are defined to describe their applications: analytical and functional protein microarrays. The chip consists of a support surface such as a glass slide, nitrocellulose membrane, bead, or microtitre plate, to which an array of capture proteins is bound. Probe molecules, typically labeled with a fluorescent dye, are added to the array. Any reaction between the probe and the immobilized protein emits a fluorescent signal that is read by a laser scanner. Protein microarrays are rapid, automated, economical, and highly sensitive, consuming small quantities of samples and reagents.

Details >>
Tissue Microarray Service

Introduction Tissue microarray is a recent innovation in the field of pathology. A microarray contains many small representative tissue samples from hundreds of different cases assembled on a single histologic slide, and therefore allows high throughput analysis of multiple specimens at the same time. In the tissue microarray technique, a hollow needle is used to remove tissue cores as small as 0.6 mm diameter from regions of interest in paraffin-embedded tissues such as clinical biopsies or tumor samples. These tissue cores are then inserted in a recipient paraffin block in a precisely spaced, array pattern. Sections from this block are cut using a microtome, mounted on a microscope slide and then analyzed by any method of standard histological analysis. Each microarray block can be cut into 100-500 sections, which can be subjected to independent tests. Tests commonly employed in tissue microarray include immunohistochemistry, and fluorescent in situ hybridization. Tissue microarrays are particularly useful in the analysis of cancer samples.

Details >>
Non-Coding RNA Microarray Services

Introduction Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have recently emerged as a novel group of non-coding RNAs able to regulate gene expression. While their role in cardiac disease is only starting to be understood, their involvement in cardiac hypertrophy is poorly known. The method to analyze the Long non-coding RNAs is the Microarray technology. The expression profiling arrays consist of various high quality cDNA and Oligo arrays, and some specific classes of functional expression arrays. These preprinted arrays have been widely used in life science research for genotyping or gene expression detection of target biological samples. Genomic array studies permit total analysis of cell genomic expression profiles, discovery of differential genes or differentially expressed genes, and the discovery of cell phenotype and drug-effect related genes. Classified functional genomic arrays are useful for repeated and detailed experimental analysis for specific functionally-related genes.

Details >>
SNP Microarray Services

Introduction The SNP array is a kind of DNA microarray that constitutes a powerful tool for high-throughput analysis of thousands of SNPs in a single experiment to globally analyze the human genome for genetic alteration. The basic principles of SNP array are the same as the DNA microarray. These are the convergence of DNA hybridization, fluorescence microscopy, and solid surface DNA capture. The three mandatory components of the SNP arrays are: (1). An array containing immobilized allele-specific oligonucleotide (ASO) probes; (2). Fragmented nucleic acid sequences of target, labeled with fluorescent dyes; and (3). A detection system that records and interprets the hybridization signal. SNP chips are generally described by the number of SNP positions they assay. Two probes must be used for each SNP position to detect both alleles; if only one probe were used, experimental failure would be indistinguishable from homozygosity of the non-probed allele.

Details >>
Differential Expression Profiling

Introduction In the field of molecular biology, gene expression profiling (DNA chip) is the measurement of the activity (the expression) of thousands of genes at once, to create a global picture of cellular function. Techniques to measure this include DNA microarrays that measure the relative activity of previously identified target genes or sequencing technologies that allow profiling of all active genes. DNA microarrays can simultaneously measure the expression level of thousands of genes within a particular mRNA sample. Such high-throughput expression profiling can be used to compare the level of gene transcription in clinical conditions in order to: (1). identify diagnostic or prognostic biomarkers; (2). classify diseases; (3). monitor the response to therapy; and (4). understand the mechanisms involved in the genesis of disease processes. For these reasons, DNA microarrays are considered important tools for discovery in clinical medicine. Steps involved in microarrays are as follows:

Details >>
Chloroplast/Mitochondrial Genome Sequencing

Introduction Plasmid and mitochondria are essential organelles in plant cells. Chloroplasts conduct photosynthesis in the presence of sunlight and mitochondria indirectly supply energy within plant cells; together they form the powerhouses of the cell. Both chloroplasts and mitochondria possess their own genomes. The chloroplast (cp) genome and mitochondrial (mt) genomes are often used for the study of plant evolution. Chloroplast Genome Sequencing Chloroplasts are active metabolic centers that sustain life on earth by converting solar energy to carbohydrates through the process of photosynthesis and oxygen release. It serves as the metabolic centers in cellular reactions to signals and respond via retrograde signaling. The chloroplast genome encodes many key proteins that are involved in photosynthesis and other metabolic processes. Thus the study of chloroplast genome plays an important role in plant biology and diversity. The development of NGS methods provided scientists with faster and cheaper methods to sequence chloroplast genomes. And among all the NGS methods, Illumina is currently the major NGS platform used for chloroplast genomes because it...

Details >>
16S/18S/ITS Amplicon Sequencing

Introduction An amplicon is a piece of DNA that is the product of PCR amplification of short hypervariable regions of conserved genes or intergenic regions. Because conventional analysis techniques miss the information of non-cultivable microorganisms, analysis of the amplicons using next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies has emerged as a relatively inexpensive and fast tool for studying the diversity of microbial communities in various environmental conditions. 16S rRNA Sequencing 16S rRNA gene sequencing is a well-established method for studying phylogeny and taxonomy of samples from complex microbiomes or environments that are difficult or impossible to study. With the ability to combine many samples in a sequencing run, microbiology researchers can use NGS-based 16S rRNA sequencing as a cost-effective technique to identify strains that may not be found using other methods. 18S rRNA/ITS Sequencing 18S rRNA and ITS Sequencing is to amplify eukaryotes broadly with a focus on microbial eukaryotic lineages. The outlines of the method are the same as the 16S method, but different primers, PCR conditions, a...

Details >>
Metagenomic Sequencing

Introduction Shotgun metagenomic sequencing is a relatively new environmental sequencing approach used to examine thousands of organisms in parallel and comprehensively sample all genes, providing insight into community biodiversity and function. The method enables microbiologists to evaluate bacterial diversity and detect the abundance of microbes in various environments. Shotgun metagenomics also provides a means to study unculturable microorganisms that are otherwise difficult or impossible to analyze. Metagenome sequencing by NGS involves several distinct steps. Firstly, total DNA is extracted from the sample, after the extraction, the DNA undergoes adapter ligation for final Illumina library preparation. The libraries are analyzed using paired-end reads to maximize coverage of the amplicons. The reads are sorted and assembled into contigs. For optional de novo genome assembly, genome binning is performed with the contigs in order to reconstruct complete genomes and to assign these assembled genomes to the closest possible taxonomy. Functional analysis can be performed additionally to detect open reading frames and associated gene functions.

Details >>
Massive Parallel Signature Sequencing

Introduction Massive Parallel Signature Sequencing (MPSS) is a method for determining expression levels of mRNA by counting the number of individual mRNA molecules produced by each gene. During MPSS, A sample of mRNA is first converted to complementary DNA (cDNA) using reverse transcriptase, which makes subsequent manipulations easier. These cDNAs are fused to a small oligonucleotide "tag" which allows the cDNA to be PCR amplified and then coupled to microbeads. After several rounds of sequence determination, using the hybridization of fluorescent-labeled probes, a sequence signature of ~16-20 bp is determined from each bead. Fluorescent imaging captures the signal from all the beads, so DNA sequences are determined from all the beads in parallel. Each signature sequence in a MPSS dataset is analyzed, compared with all other signatures and all identical signatures are counted. The level of expression of any single gene is calculated by dividing the number of signatures from that gene by the total number of signatures for all mRNAs present in the dataset. MPSS datasets are additive in nature, which means that datasets from multiple analyses with the sa...

Details >>

Contact Us

Inquired items

Inquired items

All Departments