Oligonucleotides are synthetized in amounts (called scales hereafter) of 20 nmol, 40 nmol, 200 nmol, 1 µmol and 10 µmol. The ordered scale is an approximation of the amount of final product.
The final product yield depends on:
- Synthesis yield, decreasing with higher sequence length
- Purification type, introducing some loss in output
A scale of 40 nmol is sufficient for the majority of molecular biology techniques (the oligo will suffice for more than 3000 usual PCR reactions). On the other hand a scale of 10 µmol is suitable for gene therapy applications or structural experiments.
A relatively lower fraction of proper-length products must be taken into account when ordering long oligonucleotides (exceeding 50 bases). Thus either OPC or HPLC oligo purification is recommended in such cases to eliminate incomplete shorter chains. Also the final product yield will be lower and should be compensated for by ordering higher scale.
Guaranteed and usual yields of specified purification types (oligos 15-50 bases long)
| SCALE 20 nmol | Guaranteed yield (nmol) | Usual yield (nmol) |
|---|---|---|
| standard purification | 10 | 13-20 |
| OPC purification | 8 | 13-17 |
| HPLC purification | N/A | N/A |
| SCALE 40 nmol | Guaranteed yield (nmol) | Usual yield (nmol) |
|---|---|---|
| standard purification | 20 | 35-40 |
| OPC purification | 10 | 30-35 |
| HPLC purification | 5 | 10-35 |
| SCALE 200 nmol | Guaranteed yield (nmol) | Usual yield (nmol) |
|---|---|---|
| standard purification | 60 | 130-180 |
| OPC purification | 40 | 45-130 |
| HPLC purification | 20 | 25-100 |
| SCALE 1 µmol | Guaranteed yield (nmol) | Usual yield (nmol) |
|---|---|---|
| standard purification | 300 | 350-500 |
| OPC purification | 100 | 200-300 |
| HPLC purification | 50 | 100-250 |