Endogenous control genes, also called housekeeping genes, are an essential component of relative gene expression experiments. A housekeeping gene has expression levels that are relatively constant and moderately abundant across tissues, cell types, and treatment protocols. Normalizing observed gene expression changes to an endogenous control is currently the most accurate method to resolve potential biases caused by:

  • Sample collection
  • Variation in the amount of starting material
  • Reverse transcription (RT) efficiency
  • Nucleic acid (RNA/DNA) preparation and quality
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Choosing an endogenous control or housekeeping gene
 

No single gene can act as a universal endogenous control for all experimental conditions, so we recommend verifying the chosen housekeeping gene or set of housekeeping genes for the sample tissue, cell, or treatment. TaqMan Endogenous Control Assays are a collection of assays targeting housekeeping genes that are commonly used in quantitative PCR gene expression experiments.

Use our Assay Search Tool to perform a more thorough search for all assays targeting a certain gene or use the Endogenous Control Selection tool to see what your peers have used for similar applications.

Gene expression assay search tool

Endogenous control selection tool

Use this tool to help identify potential housekeeping genes for your experiment by seeing which endogenous controls your peers have successfully used for similar applications.

  • Start by choosing a disease or gene for your query. Be as general (e.g., “cancer”) or as specific (e.g., “mature B-cell neoplasm”) as you see fit
  • The results will serve up published research articles associated with your disease research term
  • The snippets of text for each article will feature TaqMan Assay IDs used in that study. Simply click on the actively linked assay ID and access the full product details
  • Results can be filtered by Gene, Assay ID, Tissue and Species
  • Use the toggle on the right to display “All Assays” or “Endogenous Controls”
  • Hit the “Export” button above your list of filtered Assay ID’s to compile them into an excel or csv format
  • To compile a list of publications associated to your search parameters into an excl or csv format, hit the “Export” button on the lower right corner above the publication list


TaqMan Endogenous Control array plates and cards

 

If there is uncertainty around which endogenous control is most accurate for a specific experiment, endogenous control candidates may be tested in an easy, economical way using TaqMan arrays. We offer endogenous control panels in standard 96-well array plates, Fast 96-well array plates, and TaqMan array cards. These arrays may be purchased individually, maximizing flexibility to test as few or as many samples as needed. Once the candidate gene with the lowest variation has been identified from the array data, the individual TaqMan Endogenous Control Assay for that gene may be purchased for the final experiment.

View arrays


Endogenous control resources
 

Application Note: Using TaqMan Endogenous Control Assays to select an endogenous control for experimental studies

Infographic: Endogenous control selection in gene expression studies

qPCR learning center: Choosing an endogenous control

For Research Use Only. Not for use in diagnostic procedures

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