VMSR Custom Printing
The VMSR offers comprehensive microarray services on a number of technology platforms as well as custom cDNA microarrays. Fully customized spot placement and substrates are available. While printing onto glass microscope slides is most common, printing onto other substrates such as membranes and into the bottom of multiwell plates is also available. If you can imagine it, we can likely print it.
The VMSR welcomes the opportunity to print custom microarrays from DNA, oligonucleotides, RNA, protein or antibody sources for any institution or investigator. Prices vary based on the size of the print run, and the density of spots on the arrays. For pricing information, please contact us at microarray@vanderbilt.edu.
Printing services are offered on two scales. Print runs from one slide to 120 slides are available on our small-scale service, while our large-scale services are offered in collaboration with Microarrays Inc. with print services from several hundred to thousands of slides. To ensure the highest level of performance and consistency, all VMSR robotics are housed in a dedicated clean room with active temperature and humidity control. Printing conditions can be adjusted from 4°C to 25°C and 30% to 90% humidity. To make the most efficient use of valuable samples, the VMSR has modified the MicroGrid by Biorobotics/Genomic Solutions to offer printing services where evaporative losses from source plates are completely eliminated. Typical printing life for an 8µl print volume in a 384-well plate is over two years and 2500 slides with more than 80% of the volume remaining in the plate (plates are typically retired due to age). Most common print buffers can be printed at densities of 32,000 to 35,000 spots per slide with higher densities possible.
Our latest generation of microarrays includes ArrayControl™ PCR Spots for Glass Arrays from Ambion. The hybridization signals for ArrayControl PCR Spots can be used to assess the precision, accuracy and consistency of array printing and protocol sensitivity. To take advantage of the inclusion of ArrayControl Spots on VMSR microarrays, ArrayControl™ RNA Spikes must be added to the RNA at the beginning of the experiment.
Arrays can be printed with 1 to 64 grids, allowing fully customized spot placement. Made of tungsten and cut by laser, our standard pins deliver a typical spot diameter of 180 microns. Ceramic and solid pins are also available for printing with exotic print buffers or very serious samples such as protein or other biological material.
