Custom Microbial DNA qPCR Arrays

Tailored real-time PCR profiling of microbial communities becomes straightforward with QIAGEN Custom Microbial DNA qPCR Arrays, which allow researchers to assemble their own panels of bacterial, fungal, viral, archaeal, and protozoan targets from a curated primer-probe database. Each plate is built by selecting user-defined assays covering specific pathogens of interest, resistome markers, or community profiling targets, eliminating the need to design or validate individual reactions. The dried, pre-aliquoted multi-well format minimizes pipetting steps and reduces cross-contamination risk, while a universal cycling profile lets the same plate run on common real-time instruments including the Rotor-Gene Q, Applied Biosystems 7500, Bio-Rad CFX, and Roche LightCycler systems. Each well contains lyophilized reaction components plus target-specific primers and probes, so laboratories only need to add extracted DNA template and ROX reference dye where required. A 20 µL sample volume per well is typical, with completed plates that can be stored at room temperature prior to setup. Common applications include pathogen screening in clinical or veterinary specimens, surveillance of food and water samples, characterization of gut or environmental microbiomes, and longitudinal tracking of antibiotic resistance gene carriage. The custom format also supports inclusion of process controls such as internal amplification controls and pan-bacterial or pan-fungal signatures alongside user-defined targets.