OGT expands CytoSure aCGH offering with high resolution Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy array

Oxford, UK – 30 October 2009. OGT, the pioneer of microarray based technologies, has introduced the high resolution CytoSure^® DMD array. Featuring a 4x44k format and dense probe coverage of the DMD gene region, this new array offers increased confidence in detecting deletions and duplications within the DMD gene.

OGT’s bioinformatics expertise together with extensive input from Emory Genetics Laboratory and the array manufacturing precision of Agilent Technologies ensures confidence in quality and performance. The CytoSure DMD array has undergone a process of empirical testing and optimization to provide probe sets of extremely high sensitivity and specificity. Average exon probe spacing of 10 bp (106 bp within introns) ensures excellent resolution. As a result the entire DMD gene is covered on a single 44,000 feature array, which enables 4 full arrays per slide, maximizing cost-efficiency by reducing the cost per sample.

John Anson, Research and Development Director at OGT, stated, “By combining Emory Genetics Laboratory and OGT’s expertise in microarray design we believe that we are bringing a powerful tool to the market that will improve our understanding of the deletions and duplications that can occur within the DMD gene. We hope that the CytoSure DMD array will contribute to a better understanding of the genetic basis of the muscular dystrophies and will ultimately lead to the development of new diagnostic tools and therapeutic approaches.”

The CytoSure DMD array adds to OGT’s comprehensive portfolio of products and services, which together provide a complete solution to running oligo aCGH in the laboratory, from set-up to result. Manual processing and analysis of the CytoSure DMD array is straightforward using the CytoSure DMD array, CytoSure Genomic DNA labeling kit and the comprehensive new CytoSure Interpret Software. For higher throughput applications, the CytoSure DMD array is fully compatible with SciGene workflow automation products (now distributed in Europe by OGT).