PerkinElmer, which just re-released the ArrayInformatics microarray database software formerly sold by Packard, said it is planning to introduce a new version in August that is likely to include a protein array module. The reason for the new module? PerkinElmer is planning to introduce a line of protein biochips later in the year, a PerkinElmer spokesman told ProteoMonitor’s sister publication BioInform. The new version of ArrayInformatics will also be compliant with the minimum information about a microarray, or MIAME standard, the spokesman said.
The current version of ArrayInformatics which PerkinElmer developed after acquiring Packard in November, is built around a SQL Server relational database designed to store all the information associated with microarray experiments. This database includes automated input points for the company’s SpotArray printers. Additional inputs to its liquid handling and plate handling hardware, scanners, and other instrumentation are planned for future releases.
The “personal edition” of ArrayInformatics sells for $20,000 and the “research edition,” designed for up to five users, runs around $38,000 for the software loaded on a dedicated high-end server.