Embryonic Heart Microarray

KEH1 Microarray

To support our work in heart development, a microarray was needed that would contain representative features enriched for heart genes. As a source of clones, we chose a Xenopus laevis stage 45 embryonic heart library constructed in the lab of Dr. Paul Krieg at the University of Arizona. We have picked a total of 73,728 clones from this library (plated and also gridded onto filter macroarrays). Presently, 2496 of these clones have been sequenced.

Through the Center for Medical Genomics, a pilot microarray, dubbed “KEH1,” was printed from the 2496 sequenced clones, 4608 unsequenced clones, and a set of internal and external controls (figure below). This microarray has been used to test the protocols used for microarray fabrication and hybridizations, as well as Xenopus RNA collection and handling.

KEH2 Microarray

Printing of the second generation embryonic heart microarray, KEH2, containing 15,504 features has now been completed. Each microarray is printed with a set of external and internal control probes. The external control probes are Stratagene’s Alien Spot Report nonsense sequences as well as bacterial gene clones used by the CMG. Internal controls are species-specific genes that have been determined by the CMG to vary little in expression over a wide range of experiments. Additionally, genes that have been used as traditional expression controls, such as beta-actin, G3PDH, Ef1-alpha, and Ornithine Decarboxylase are included in the control set. Finally, a set of well-characterized genes known to be involved in heart development (such as the tinman and GATA genes) have also been included in KEH2.

Please contact Matthew Grow for more information about this microarray.