A microarray is a multiplex lab-on-a-chip. It is a 2D array on a solid substrate (usually a glass slide or silicon thin-film cell) that assays large amounts of biological material using high-throughput screening methods.
Types of microarrays include:
- DNA microarrays, such as cDNA microarrays, oligonucleotide microarrays and SNP microarrays
- MMChips, for surveillance of microRNA populations
- Protein microarrays
- Peptide microarrays, for detailed analyses or optimization of protein-protein interactions
- Tissue microarrays
- Cellular microarrays (also called transfection microarrays)
- Chemical compound microarrays
- Antibody microarrays
- Carbohydrate arrays (glycoarrays)