A new chromosome banding technique, spectral color banding (SCAN), for full characterization of chromosomal abnormalities.

We have developed spectral color banding (SCAN) as a new chromosome banding technique based on spectral analysis of differentially labeled chromosome band-specific painting probes. In this study, we succeeded in displaying a multicolor banding pattern for chromosome 3, which was almost identical to the pattern obtained with the corresponding G-banding. We applied this method to metaphase cells from different normal male donors with various levels of G-banding resolution, ranging from 250 to 850 bands per haploid set. The same multicolor banding pattern was observed in all samples regardless of the length of the chromosomes or the quality of the G-banding. We then used SCAN in a diffuse large B-cell lymphoma case for a complete analysis of the intrachromosomal change for chromosome 3, which could not be fully characterized by G-banding or even by spectral karyotyping (SKY). SCAN could detect the duplicated segment and identify the origin of the chromosome band on the basis of the specific spectral color of each band. This study demonstrates that SCAN is a useful tool for full characterization of chromosomal abnormalities not identified by SKY. Copyright 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc.