The SURF Technique : Selective Genetic Analysis of Microscopic Tissue Heterogeneity

Selective ultraviolet radiation fractionation (SURF) is a simple technique for the isolation of histologically defined microscopic tissue regions (1,2). Very small numbers (100-400) of cells can be rapidly isolated with relatively crude equipment. The isolated cells can be analyzed genetically by PCR, thereby allowing a direct comparison between microscopic phenotype with genotype. The ability to compare genotype between different tissue areas provides opportunities to analyze many disease processes, including the heterogeneity expected of multistep tumor progression.