About the Affymetrix 417/418
The Affymetrix 417 Arrayer uses a Pin-and-Ring assembly to accurately and consistently transfer precise amounts of baits from microplates to the array substrate. The controlling software provides reasonable defaults for ease of use in most circumstances, while also allowing the user to define many parameters when a more customized array design is desired. The 417 Arrayer is capable of printing 18,000 spots per slide. Spot redundancy is required for data reliability; the recommended level is three spots per bait, so the upper limit for custom arrays is currently 6000 unique bait sequences.
For performing scans on custom hybridized arrays, the Facility makes use of an Affymetrix 418 Array Scanner, which uses high-powered solidstate lasers to provide high excitation at two predefined wavelengths. These wavelengths correspond to the optimal excitation ranges for the most commonly used microarray labels, cyanine 3 and 5. A tightly focused beam of light moves across the slide while the patented confocal flying objective technology provides highly efficient light collection. Fluorescence polarization analysis is conducted using an LJL Analyst fluorescence reader. Sequencing is run on the ABI 3730, ABI 3700, or ABI 3100 DNA Analyzers. SNPs detected by Taqman™ are run on the 7900HT.