Bio-Rad Firmware & Software Updates - Manual (Page 56)

MiniOpticon Instruction Manual
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Well Loading Controls
A plate file contains information about the contents of each well loaded with sample for a run.
After the run, the software links the well contents to the fluorescence data collected during the
protocol and applies the appropriate analysis in the Data Analysis window. For example, wells
loaded with standard sample type are used to generate a standard curve.
When setting up a gene expression run, consider the following guidelines for well contents:
• Target Name. One or more targets of interest (genes or sequences) in each loaded well.
Each target is assigned to one fluorophore
• Sample Name. One identifier or condition that corresponds to the sample in each
loaded well, such as “0 hr”, “1 hr”, or “2 hr”
TIP: Target names and sample names must match between wells to compare data
in the Gene Expression tab in the Data Analysis window. Each name must contain
the same punctuation and spacing. For example, “Actin” is not the same as
“actin”, and “2hr” is not the same as “2 hr”. To facilitate consistency in names,
enter them in the Target and Sample Names Libraries in the Plate tab in the User
Preferences window (page 117).
• Biological Set Name. Select View > Show Biological Set Name to show this pane
in the well loading controls and then enter Biological Set names for one or more
wells.
Select a well to load contents into by left-clicking in the plate view. Hold down the mouse
button and drag to select multiple wells. The buttons and lists on the right side of the plate
view include all the options needed to load the wells (Table 16).
Table 16. Options for loading the plate and wells in the Plate Editor.
Option Function
After selecting wells, the Sample Type must be loaded
first. Select a Sample Type from the pull-down menu to
load it in the selected wells, including Unknown,
Standard, NTC (no template control), Positive Control,
Negative Control, and NRT (no reverse transcriptase).
Click a Load box to add a fluorophore to the selected
wells; each fluorophore corresponds to a target name. To
add fluorophores to the Load list, select them in the
Select Fluorophores window.
For gene expression analysis or to distinguish among
multiple targets, select a name in the Target Name pull-
down menu and press the Enter key to load the target
name in the well. To delete a target name, select it, press
the Delete key, and then press the Enter key.
TIP: To add a new target name to the pull-down menu in
the current plate only, type a name in the pull-down box
and press the Enter key.