What is DNAssist?
DNAssist is an open-source, cross-platform software tool used for DNA sequence design and analysis. It was developed at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to help scientists easily design primers, probes, and cloning strategies for common molecular biology experiments like PCR, sequencing, and cloning.
Some key features of DNAssist include:
- Intuitive graphical user interface for visualizing DNA sequences
- Tools for finding and avoiding primer dimers or hairpins
- PCR primer and probe design with Tm and GC content calculations
- Plasmid maps and sequence analysis tools
- Support for designing Gibson assembly and golden gate cloning strategies
- Ability to batch process large numbers of sequences
- Export of publication-ready vector maps and sequence files
DNAssist runs on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux systems. The software and full documentation are available for free download under an open-source license from the NIST website. It provides scientists with a user-friendly desktop application for handling routine DNA sequence manipulations required in modern molecular biology labs.
SnapGene Viewer, Chromas, BioEdit, Geneious, DNADynamo, ApE - A plasmid Editor, PlasmaDNA, Open Vector Editor Electron, GeneStudio, Gene Construction Kit are some alternatives to DNAssist.