MICROARRAY

Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore MD

Investigators

Linked publications, trials & patents

Abstract

A newly designed microarray core, including a newly hired manager, and faculty leader, has been established since November, 2004, with the purpose of offering full service, affordable, microarray services to Cancer Center members. The Core operates in conjunction with support from the Department of Medicine and has close links to the School of Medicine Affymetrix core and is seamlessly linked to the new Bioinformatics Core in the Cancer Center. Using the long-oligo Agilent platform, the Center Core offers full 40K human, and mouse, 23 K rat, and 10K yeast gene expression coverage. The facility also has the capacity to utilize custom gene expression arrays from Agilent and has facilities for printing custom human, mouse, and canine cDNA arrays as well. Most recently, the Core offers an Agilent 44K gene transcript oligo based CGH coverage for comprehensive structural analysis of all human chromosomes. The full service offered to investigators includes optional RNA and DNA extraction, QC of RNA and DNA samples, hybridization, scanning and provision of an annotated gene list, or detailed chromosome maps for CGH data, with Agilent software analysis of statistical significance of gene expression changes, etc. In conjunction with the Bioinformatics Core, users are offered instruction for full data analyses, with consultation and collaborative links to the Bioinformatics Core for the most sophisticated needs. Powerful Bioconductor software has been adapted, by the Informatics Core, for encompassing Agilent data. Regular microarray seminars, arranged by the Bioinformatics Core, and presentations by Agilent and other array offering companies, arranged by the Microarray Core, are made available to all users and Center members and also to the School of Medicine community.