Affymetrix Launches New Automated Microarray Processing Platform
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Affymetrix has unveiled the commercial launch of its GeneChip HT Array Plate System, a full microarray processing platform that analyzes up to 96 samples at a time. According to Affymetrix, the HT Array Plates offer the same comprehensive, validated content as the traditional cartridges in a format designed for larger-scale studies. The complete system increases productivity for large-scale gene expression studies by decreasing processing time, improving data consistency and reducing overall costs.
Researchers at large pharmaceutical companies and clinical research laboratories can now increase the scope and scale of their gene expression microarray projects without additional manpower, states the company. The automated system provides consistent microarray data for every experimental sample run, which reduces the need to reanalyze samples. The HT Array Plate System also helps ensure reproducible data for large-scale studies that are conducted in multiple laboratories. Compared to manual methods, the complete HT Array Plate System reduces the overall required labor time by at least 40 percent.
The HT Array Plate System is built on the same GeneChip technology that has been the industry standard in microarray research for the past decade. The system includes flexible instrumentation, proven GeneChip microarrays, optimized assays and reagents as well as open software architecture. The integral components include:
GeneChip HT Array Plates--provide comprehensive coverage of the transcribed human, mouse and rat genomes in a convenient configuration that enables researchers to interrogate either 24 or 96 distinct samples at one time; GeneChip HT One-Cycle Target Labelling and Control Reagents--offer optimized target preparation kit for large-scale gene expression studies; GeneChip Array Station for automated target preparation and microarray processing--allows one person to prepare the same number of targets that four people could accomplish manually; GeneChip HT Array Plate Scanner--delivers the industry-leading image quality and turnaround time of less than three minutes per array; And GeneChip HT Software Suite--features latest version of GeneChip Operating Software (GCOS), HT Image Reader and HT Data Transfer Tool.
According to the announcement, scientists at Avalon Pharmaceuticals have processed thousands of samples on the system and are using the data to identify and develop new compounds for oncology therapeutics. The Affymetrix system enables the team to analyze compound effects across thousands of genes simultaneously, and compare the activity of compounds to a large transcription database derived from cellular treatments.
"The Affymetrix HT Array Plate System enables high-throughput gene expression studies in a highly reliable, reproducible and cost-effective manner," said Dan Soppet, director of lead development at Avalon Pharmaceuticals. "When compared to our previous two color glass slide arrays, the automated 96-well format has more than doubled our throughput, while reducing process failures by 10-fold to a level of 1 to 2 percent. These features allow us to confidently schedule research programs and rapidly produce very high-quality results for both internal discovery and corporate partnerships."
The HT Array Plate System is built on the same GeneChip technology that has been the industry standard in microarray research for the past decade. The system includes flexible instrumentation, proven GeneChip microarrays, optimized assays and reagents as well as open software architecture. The integral components include:
GeneChip HT Array Plates--provide comprehensive coverage of the transcribed human, mouse and rat genomes in a convenient configuration that enables researchers to interrogate either 24 or 96 distinct samples at one time; GeneChip HT One-Cycle Target Labelling and Control Reagents--offer optimized target preparation kit for large-scale gene expression studies; GeneChip Array Station for automated target preparation and microarray processing--allows one person to prepare the same number of targets that four people could accomplish manually; GeneChip HT Array Plate Scanner--delivers the industry-leading image quality and turnaround time of less than three minutes per array; And GeneChip HT Software Suite--features latest version of GeneChip Operating Software (GCOS), HT Image Reader and HT Data Transfer Tool.
According to the announcement, scientists at Avalon Pharmaceuticals have processed thousands of samples on the system and are using the data to identify and develop new compounds for oncology therapeutics. The Affymetrix system enables the team to analyze compound effects across thousands of genes simultaneously, and compare the activity of compounds to a large transcription database derived from cellular treatments.
"The Affymetrix HT Array Plate System enables high-throughput gene expression studies in a highly reliable, reproducible and cost-effective manner," said Dan Soppet, director of lead development at Avalon Pharmaceuticals. "When compared to our previous two color glass slide arrays, the automated 96-well format has more than doubled our throughput, while reducing process failures by 10-fold to a level of 1 to 2 percent. These features allow us to confidently schedule research programs and rapidly produce very high-quality results for both internal discovery and corporate partnerships."
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