EpiTect Bisulfite Kit

Qiagen N.V., a leading provider of molecular diagnostics products and the world’s premier supplier of solutions for preanalytical sample preparation, launched its EpiTect Bisulfite Kit for standardized sample processing for DNA methylation analysis in April 2006 in the research market.

This preanalytical solution also incorporates certain technologies from Epigenomics for DNA methylation and presents a new dimension of capabilities for epigenetics-based diagnostics in pharmacogenetics and molecular diagnostic research. 

Qiagens new EpiTect Bisulfite Kit, developed in collaboration with Epigenomics, significantly facilitates the complex and time consuming step of DNA bisulfite treatment in DNA methylation analysis. The bisulfite treatment (i.e. the conversion of all unmethylated Cytosins into Uracil) allows methylated DNA to be distinguished from unmethylated DNA by standard molecular biology techniques including DNA sequencing and polymerase chain reactions (PCR).

The bisulfite treatment of DNA is an integrated, chemical modification of DNA following collection, stabilization and purification of the sample. The streamlined procedure combines two key technologies, an optimized DNA cleanup procedure, based a unique DNA cleanup and purification technology from Qiagen and a solution including a proprietary technology from Epigenomics, which prevents DNA from excessive degradation during the chemical treatment and ensures best possible yields in the chemical modification step.

Further product information as well as ordering is available here.