Table 1

Tissue standards (italicized) for vertebrate genomics corresponding to storage and quality of target materials (bolded)
Four-star Three-star Two-star One-star
DNA quantity
1 mg X X
> 700 μg X
≤ 700 μg a X
Target materials
Cell lines/tissue culture X
RNA X X
DNA X X X X b
Specimen typec
Live/freshly euthanized X d X
Salvaged X X
Voucher X X
Storage
RNAlater® X
DNAgard/DNAstable® X
≤ −130°C X
≥ −80°C X
≥ −20°C X
Ethanol X

aSmaller quantities (30 to 100 μg) from multiple individuals of the same species will support light-coverage sequencing for single-nucleotide polymorphism discovery.

bHigh-quality or slightly degraded DNA of small quantities will not likely be sufficient for whole-genome sequencing; these samples may supplement whole-genome sequencing efforts of higher-quality samples.

cStandards will vary depending on tissue selection and natural history of the specimen.

dFour-star samples should also include reference species for aligning de novo sequences of closely related species (see text for more details).

Wong et al. GigaScience 2012 1:8   doi:10.1186/2047-217X-1-8

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