Agilent Technologies and Qiagen create rapid method
Agilent Technologies and Qiagen have created a rapid method for optimising the introduction of siRNAs into cells to silence gene function. The Agilent 2100 bioanalyser with cell fluorescence LabChip kit, DNA 1000 LabChip kit can be combined with Qiagen's TransMessenger and RNAiFect reagents and fluorescently tagged siRNAs. The Agilent 2100 bioanalyser combines electrophoretic analysis of nucleic acids and dual colour flow cytometry, which provides quantitative information on the amount of siRNA that has been introduced, and the viability of the cells. The companies claim that the system is cheaper and simpler to use than conventional flow cytometer instruments.