Life Length patented Telomere Analysis Technology (TAT®) is based on a quantitative fluorescence in-situ hybridization (Q-FISH) method modified for cells in interphase.
In brief, telomeres are hybridized with a fluorescent Peptide Nucleic Acid (PNA) probe that recognizes three telomere repeats. The images of the nuclei and telomeres are captured by a high-content screen system. The intensities of fluorescence are translated to base pairs (bp) through a standard regression curve which is generated using control cell lines with known telomere length.
Data outputs:
- Percentage of critically short telomeres (<3 Kbp)
- Telomere length percentiles (0–99)
- Median telomere length (MTL)
Robust protocol
- Clinically validated (CLIA y ISO 15189)
- 5 replicates per sample
- Can be performed on any cell type or tissue
- Simultaneous processing of hundreds of samples (384 plates)
- Intra-assay coefficient of variation <5%
- Seven control cell lines
- Thousands of individual telomeres measured per sample
- Full study report with statistical analysis included.
The TAT® technology distinguishes telomerase-positive from ALT (Alternative Lengthening of Telomeres) cells by identifying the bimodal telomere length distribution of very short and very long telomeres.