Development and characterization of a Chinese hamster ovary cell-specific oligonucleotide microarray

The Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cell line is one of the most widely used mammalian cell lines for biopharmaceutical production. We have developed and characterized a gene expression microarray (WyeHamster2a) specific for CHO cells that has enabled the study of similar to 3,500 sequences. Analysis of multiple sets of replicate scans showed that data derived from the WyeHamster2a array is highly reproducible confirming it as a robust tool for profiling. Twelve gene sequences were selected for follow-up RT-qPCR to confirm the accuracy and precision of the microarray results. In all but the most subtle gene expression differences, the microarray proved to be a reliable measure of differential gene expression. Finally, we were able to quantify the difference between using a bona fide CHO-specific microarray for profiling CHO cells versus an alternate, commercially available, rodent microarray such as a mouse or rat-specific format.