Together, the platforms enable researchers to effectively study the entire genome for epigenetic interactions between DNA and DNA-binding proteins to determine regions of the genome that are transcriptionally active or repressed as well as the mechanisms that regulate these processes, the two companies said.
To facilitate the ChIP-chip workflow, Roche NimbleGen and Sigma-Aldrich will publish protocols for ChIP-chip research and provide technical support to researchers integrating the two technologies, as well as co-market their complementary products.
The technologies from Sigma-Aldrich and Roche NimbleGen facilitate effective ChIP-chip research by addressing two critical bottlenecks in the workflow: efficient amplification of targeted sections of DNA and high-resolution microarray detection, said Roche. With the whole genome effectively amplified by GenomePlex, analysis on Roche NimbleGen high-density arrays can reveal rare protein-DNA interactions with a high signal to noise ratio and sensitivity.
Peggy Farnham, professor of pharmacology and associate director of genomics at the University of California Davis, said: “The Sigma-Aldrich whole genome amplification technology is our method of choice for preparing ChIP samples for microarray analysis. The high reproducibility and effectiveness of GenomePlex for amplifying ChIP samples from a small number of cells, in combination with the outstanding sensitivity of the Roche NimbleGen high density microarrays, allows us to study chromatin patterns in small amounts of normal and cancer tissues.”