Whole genome amplification from microdissected chromosomes

Over the last years various whole genome amplification (WGA) methods have been established for genetic investigations from a limited number of cells or small quantities of DNA but not for molecular analysis of isolated chromosomes, which is important for the direct investigation of haplotypes or molecular rearrangements of derivative chromosomes in clinical cytogenetics and oncology. Here, the results of a pilot study in which the GenomePlex Single Cell Kit linker adapter PCR approach (Sigma-Aldrich, Vienna, Austria) was modified for WGA of glass needle based microdissected chromosomes are presented. Compared with two other WGA strategies (Improved-Primer Extension Preamplification PCR and Multiple Displacement Amplification) the GenomePlex Single Cell Kit shows a higher rate of successfully amplified markers, a lower WGA drop out rate and faster feasibility.