Miniaturizing qPCR assays and simplifying standard curve preparations

This application note demonstrates a successfully miniaturized qPCR assay with the Thermo Scientific™ Multidrop™ Pico 8 Digital Dispenser and PicoIT 8 software. In three simple steps, the PicoIT 8 software enables the setup of a qPCR assay plate including titrations of reagents needed for a standard curve. Then, with the Multidrop Pico 8 Digital Dispenser, the reagents for a miniaturized volume (5 µL reaction) in a 384-well qPCR assay plate are dispensed, mixed, and ready to be placed on the Applied Biosystems™ QuantStudio™ Real-Time PCR System for amplification. The results show how the Multidrop Pico 8 Digital Dispenser and PicoIT 8 software allows users to easily set up a miniaturized Applied Biosystems™ TaqMan^® qPCR assay plate with successful amplification of the input cDNA.