Tips include how to dispense hybridization mix to the center of the gasket chamber, why you should monitor the temperature of the hybridization oven, and why it is essential to dislodge stuck bubbles in the hybridization chamber.
Take extra care when pipetting the viscous hybridization buffer.
Mike Ornelas
FAS Manager – North America
Insufficient volumes of the hybridization mix will result in black holes on the subarrays.
Pete Gray
Array and NGS Field Application Specialist, Europe
Slowly dispense hybridization mix to the center of the gasket chamber. Carefully move the pipette tip around the center to spread hybridization mix evenly. Avoid going close to edges of gasket.
Mike Ornelas
FAS Manager – North America
Monitor the temperature of the hybridization oven using a calibrated reference thermometer. Oven temperatures can drift over time and lead to sub-optimal hybridization conditions.
Pete Gray
Array and NGS Field Application Specialist, Europe
Avoid scratching or cracking microarray slides by ensuring that the microarray “jig”, which holds the slides together during hybridization, is clean and rust-free before tightening.
Mike Ornelas
FAS Manager – North America
Ensure that bubbles in the hybridization chamber are all moving freely. Tap on hand or bench to dislodge stuck bubbles. Free movement of the bubbles is required to ensure efficient hybridization. Any bubbles that are stuck will result in no hybridization under the bubble and a dark hole will be seen on the scanned images.
Pete Gray
Array and NGS Field Application Specialist, Europe
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