How To Choose The Right PCR Plates In Your Lab?

GSBIO PCR Plates Types

Note: For Double Colors Full-skirted PCR Plate, there are three frame options: Clear, White, or Black.

Five Concerns of Choosing GSBIO PCR Plates

1.  0.1 mL vs.  0.2 mL

· Low-Profile PCR Plates: Designed to reduce “dead space” between the sample and the heat source. They are ideal for qPCR, because they maximize thermal transfer efficiency and allow for smaller reaction volumes (typically 0.1 mL) 

· High-Profile PCR Plates: These accommodate larger reaction volumes (typically 0.2 mL) and are standard in many conventional PCR machines. 

2. Non-Skirted vs. Semi-Skirted vs. High-skirted vs. Full-Skirted

· Non-Skirted: Flexible and fits almost all thermal cyclers. Best for cost-effectively manual workstations.

· Semi-Skirted: Features a short skirt that provides better rigidity than non-skirted versions. Best for most thermal cyclers and many automated liquid handlers.

· High-skirted: Higher skirt compared than semi-skirted. Best for specific automated systems that require a taller profile for handling or identification.

· Full-Skirted: Offers maximum rigidity. Best for high-throughput IVD platforms and integrated automated systems.

3. White vs. Clear vs. Black 

· Clear/Natural Plates (Standard): Designed for Standard PCR and visual inspection. Most cost-effective and ideal for end-point PCR.

· White Plates (Reflective): Designed for qPCR (Real-Time PCR). Maximizes fluorescence signal detection. Reduces background noise, improving sensitivity.

· Black Plates (Absorptive): Ideal for other fluorescence-based applications where minimizing background is critical. Black wells absorb stray light and prevent crosstalk, making them perfect for FRET assays or VEGF detection where maximum signal-to-noise ratio is required.

4.  Material

· Virgin Polypropylene: Ensure the plates are made from European-imported, virgin, medical-grade polypropylene. 

· Clean-Room Manufactured: Class 100,000 cleanrooms. This guarantees PCR plates are free from DNase, RNase, Human Genomic DNA, and PCR inhibitors. 

· Thin-Wall Uniformity: Japan-imported injection molding machines. Precise injection molding creates ultra-thin, uniform well walls. This provides excellent thermal transfer effects, and promotes the maximum amplification from samples.