Cheaper, Faster Multiplexed PCR

Courtesy of Beckman Coulter

In collaboration with San Diego-based Althea Technologies, Beckman Coulter http://www.beckmancoulter.com recently released the GenomeLab GeXP Genetic Analysis System. The GeXP system uses a two-primer endpoint PCR process, with gene-specific universal primers, to run up to two 96-well plates per day. Researchers can test for the expression of about 20 to 30 genes per reaction per well.

Althea has offered multiplexed endpoint PCR as a contract service for several years. With the release of the GeXP, Beckman Coulter allows labs to use Althea's high-throughput multiplexed PCR technology in-house. Although it was designed primarily for gene-expression research, the GeXP is a multipurpose system, says Noreen Galvin, Beckman Coulter's business center manager.

"It can do sequencing, genotyping, SNP analysis, AFLP [amplified fragment-length polymorphism] analysis," she says, for a fraction of the cost per gene of real-time PCR.

For researchers who need to test many samples against a targeted...