Quantabio, a provider of DNA and RNA amplification reagents for molecular testing and life science research applications, announced the commercial availability of the qScript Ultra Flex Kit and the qScript Ultra SuperMix for the synthesis of first-strand complementary DNA (cDNA).

Both products are part of the new qScript Ultra product family, which features the company’s new reverse transcriptase (RT) enzyme technology which is designed to improve product performance, speed, and ease of use. The solutions are aimed at helping researchers overcome common PCR inhibitors and reverse transcribe long RNA targets from a broad range of challenging input quantities in an unbiased manner in only 10 minutes. 

cDNA synthesis from RNA is an important first step in many gene expression analysis and pathogen detection applications that utilize real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) or next-generation sequencing (NGS).

These projects require robust enzyme technologies and priming options to generate cDNA products or libraries that accurately represent the original RNA transcripts. The qScript Ultra products maximize cDNA yields for downstream analysis. Compared to alternative technologies, the new Quantabio products offer several unique advantages, including:

  • Enhanced Thermostability: Engineered for optimal RT activity from 55 to 60° C (65° C maximum)
  • Improved Speed: 10-minute reaction time with a total protocol time of 13 minutes 
  • Maximum Yield & Sensitivity: Wide linear dynamic range with consistent and efficient cDNA conversion from 2.5 μg – 1 pg of total RNA 
  • Inhibitor Resistance: Overcome a wide array of PCR inhibitors (salt, heparin, melanin, etc.) 
  • Balanced Coverage of Long Transcripts: Ability to reverse transcribe single targets up to 20 kb and produce an unbiased representation of the transcriptome 

“Since our founding in 2001, Quantabio has created a comprehensive portfolio of industry-leading RNA and DNA enzyme and reagent technologies for everything from life science and translational research to real-world SARS-CoV-2 testing to newborn screening,” says David Schuster, head of R&D at Quantabio. “The new qScript Ultra product family was developed based on direct feedback from our customers. To help meet the growing demand for these next-generation products, we are now increasing headcount and scaling our commercial organization to unlock additional markets.”

The qScript Ultra SuperMix is a single tube master mix for first-strand synthesis that delivers rapid and reproducible results with an unbiased representation of RNA sequences in cDNA. It is directly compatible with downstream 2-step RT-qPCR or RT-PCR procedures and is ideally suited for gene expression or RNA pathogen quantification studies. The kit is available in 25, 100, or 500 reactions and contains all required components for first-strand cDNA synthesis except RNA template.

Meanwhile, the qScript Ultra Flex Kit offers flexible, user-defined priming methods, including oligo-dT, random primers and/or gene-specific priming to reverse transcribe RNA to cDNA. The kit contains all required components for first-strand cDNA synthesis except RNA template and gene-specific primers. Available in 25 or 100 reactions, the kit is compatible with downstream 2-step RT-qPCR or RT-PCR procedures.

Featured image: qScript Ultra Flex kit. Photo: Quantabio