Detection of DNA damage and identification of UV-induced photoproducts using the CometAssay kit.

We introduce the first commercially available comet assay for the detection and quantification of DNA damage in individual eukaryotic cells. The major difficulty of the comet assay is the preparation of the slides needed to immobilize the samples throughout the lysis and electrophoretic procedures. The CometAssay kit uses a proprietary technology to precoat glass microscope slides to allow direct application of the agarose embedded sample without any additional slide treatment. In this report, we discuss the detection of DNA damage in individual cells exposed to ultraviolet irradiation using the new CometSlides and their cost compared to traditional slides.