How do I confirm the quality of my CUT&RUN sequencing library?

There are two general approaches to confirming the quality of your CUT&RUN sequencing library, outlined below.

Library yields

  • In general, library yields should not be used to determine assay success. Library yields vary widely by cell type, number of cells, target abundance, and antibody quality.

  • Aim for a library concentration of ≥ 1 nM, which will enable pooling at standard concentrations for multiplexed sequencing.

  • For library concentrations below 0.5 nM, see see this article.

Fragment distribution of purified library

  • Fragment distribution analysis of purified sequencing libraries is the single BEST method to confirm CUT&RUN success.

  • Libraries should show enrichment of mononucleosome-sized DNA fragments at ~300 bp, which includes CUT&RUN DNA + sequencing adapters (see Figure 1).

tapestation trace resized@2x-8

Figure 1. Typical TapeStation traces from CUTANA CUT&RUN libraries prepared using antibodies targeting IgG (EpiCypher 13-0042), H3K4me3 (EpiCypher 13-0060), and CTCF (EpiCypher 13-2014). All libraries are predominantly enriched for mononucleosome-sized fragments, as indicated by the peak at ~300 bp (~170 bp nucleosomes + sequencing adapters).