Ultra-high resolution array comparative genomic hybridisation (CGH) products for investigation of DNA copy number changes may be of interest to the cancer research community
NimbleGen Systems announces the launch of microarray-based comparative genomic hybridisation (CGH) products and services for the detection of DNA copy number changes on the whole-genome level or at ultra-high resolution using fine-tiling arrays for selected chromosomal regions.
Nimblegen is represented exclusively in the UK and France by GRI.
Array CGH is a widely used technique for cancer research and the identification of chromosomal abnormalities associated with congenital developmental disorders.
A change in DNA copy number results when part or all of a chromosome is amplified or deleted.
Such alterations, which can range in size from a few hundred to several million base pairs, frequently occur in multiple regions on the same chromosome or across multiple chromosomes.
Cancer researchers currently use array CGH to identify sets of copy number changes associated with a particular cancer or its severity, and to develop not only diagnostic tests but also new drug therapies.
Two common classes of genes, tumour suppressors and oncogenes, play a role in cancer initiation and progression through their deletion or amplification.
NimbleGen combines its high-capacity 385,000 probe microarrays with its long oligonucleotide probes designed with matched melting temperatures to produce the highest resolution array CGH products on the market.
Their novel isothermal probe selection strategy enables consistent detection of copy number changes in any non-repetitive region of the genome, thus affording researchers the greatest flexibility in their experiments and enabling detection of single and multiple copy changes.
The flexibility of NimbleGen's Maskless Array Synthesis (MAS) platform provides an additional key benefit over existing array CGH platforms, it says.
Because NimbleGen arrays can be so rapidly and cost-effectively produced, researchers can create customised array CGH microarrays, finely tiling through a subset of chromosomal regions.
"NimbleGen's array CGH technology represents one of several important emerging methods of genetic analysis that are best addressed by high-density arrays containing long oligo probes" said Stan Rose, NimbleGen's president and CEO.
"This is the most advanced research tool yet developed for copy number analysis on a genome-wide basis, and our rapid custom design capabilities allow for even higher resolution analysis of targeted genetic regions.
"We expect these new tools to be widely used in basic and clinical research, particularly in oncology, and in development of complex genetic diagnostics".
NimbleGen plans to launch two array CGH products at the AACR National Meeting: Human Whole-Genome Array CGH and Custom Fine-Tiling Array CGH.
The Human Whole-Genome Array CGH product is a single-array design with 385,000 probes tiled throughout the human genome with a median probe spacing of 6,000bp, thus enabling the highest resolution human whole-genome array CGH experiments.
"Other commercially available oligonucleotide array CGH products use a gene-centric design, with a small number of probes located outside the genes.
"NimbleGen's tiled probe design is an unbiased approach that makes no assumptions about which genes or regions are most relevant for array CGH researchers.
"This is of particular note as array CGH is rapidly gaining recognition as a tool for investigation of complex diseases other than cancer, such as neuropsychiatric disorders, and for analysis of normal-vs-normal copy number polymorphisms, which may play a role in other genomic research areas such as pharmacogenetics.
"Furthermore, it is becoming increasingly apparent that the enhancers, insulators, and boundary elements that lie outside of genes are important in many disease states," said Roland Green, chief technology office and vice president of R and D at NimbleGen.
"Our early access customers have provided very positive feedback regarding NimbleGen's array CGH performance relative to other available technologies".
NimbleGen's human array CGH uses the most current genome sequence information available (HG17, NCBI Build 35).
In addition to human array CGH, NimbleGen will soon be offering whole-genome array CGH products for model organisms such as mouse and C elegans.
The Custom Fine-Tiling Array CGH product also contains 385,000 isothermal probes per array, tiled at higher resolution in chromosomal region(s) selected by the researcher.
These probes, which can be spaced as densely as every 10bp, provide the highest resolution breakpoint mapping (<500bp intervals) commercially available.
Fine-tiling array CGH can be used to detect and map copy number changes in any publicly available genome, including human and all major model organisms.
Nimblegen is represented exclusively in the UK and France by GRI.
