INTRODUCTION

Microarrays are microscopic spots of DNA (measured in micrometers) arranged in an ordered manner (columns and rows) on a planar surface so that each DNA spot can be uniquely identified to facilitate an accurate analysis of the data. The DNA spots, also called array elements, are specific DNA molecules of known or unknown sequences and can be of similar or different nucleotide lengths. Samples of these mixtures are placed in fixed locations on the microarray.