This Information Applies To: Agilent AriaMx real-time PCR system
Issue
AriaMx run data can be exported in different formats using the Export Data screen.
Steps to Follow
The Export Data panel has options for exporting numerical data from the experiment to Excel, text, LIMS data, or real-time PCR data markup language (RDML) files. Data files may contain information on the experiment's setup as well as information about the experiment's results. To open the Export Data screen: Click Export Data in the Experiment Area panel on the left side of the AriaMx software.
Select the Items Included in the File
You can customize the file before creating it by selecting which data elements to include. To include and exclude item from the file:
In the Export Configuration Panel of the Export Data screen (Figure 1), under Items, select the items that you want to include in the file. Clear the check boxes for any items that you do not want to include. The preview of the file in the center of the screen includes only the selected items. The name of the item is at the top of each page.
Figure 1. Export Configuration menu in the Export Data tab of the AriaMx software.
To customize the elements of the Plate Setup, Thermal Profile, Tabular Results, or Experiment Notes:
In the Export Configuration Panel of the Export Data screen (Figure 1), under Items, make sure that the check box for the item that you want to customize is selected.
To open the column options dialog box, click the 
icon next to each item (Figure 2).
Figure 2. Column Options dialog box. The Plate Setup column options are shown.
Select the elements that you want to include in the exported file. Clear the check boxes for elements that you do not want to include.
To sort the data for elements that are in a table format (e.g., plate setup), click directly on the header of the column on which you want to sort (Figure 3).
To designate a second column for secondary sorting, press shift then click the header of the second column Figure 4). The columns selected for sorting are highlighted in blue. Data will be sorted in the exported file in the same manner that they are sorted in the software.
Figure 5. Exporting selected rows from the Plate Setup and Tabiular Results tables
Export to Excel
When you export data/results to Excel, the program automatically launches Microsoft Excel and creates a workbook with each data item displayed on a separate tab within the workbook. You can then save the workbook with the file name and folder location of your choice.
To configure and export data to an Excel file:
On the Export Data screen, next to File Type, select Excel.
Under Items, select the items that you want to include in the file. See Select the Items Included in the File.
Click Export Data.
In Excel, save the file as desired.
Export to Excel Without Having Excel Installed on the PC
These files can be opened in Excel (on a different computer) or by any other text editor software. For convenience, these individual files are combined within the same Excel file as separate tabs when selecting "Excel" as the file type.
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For information about how to change the items to export, please see chapter 8 of the AriaMx Real-Time PCR System Software User Guide.
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Export to Text Files
When you export data/results as a text file, the program creates a separate text file for each data item included in the data export configuration. The file names include the experiment name and data item. The program prompts you to select a folder location for the files. You can then open the files in the text editing program of your choice.
To configure and export data to text files:
On the Export Data screen, next to File Type, select Text.
Under Items, select the items that you want to include in the file. See Select the Items Included in the File.
Click Export Data. The Browse For Folder dialog box opens.
Select the folder where you want to save the text files and click OK. The program creates the files and saves them in the designated folder.
Export to a LIMS data file
A laboratory information management system (LIMS) is a software system for managing and tracking laboratory activities. The AriaMx program allows you to export data/results from a postrun experiment to a text file or CSV file that can then be loaded into a LIMS program.
To configure and export data to a LIMS data file:
On the Export Data screen, next to File Type, select LIMS.
Under Items, mark the items that you want to include in the file. See Select the Items Included in the File.
In the File Format drop-down list, select a file type for the exported LIMS file. Select txt to generate a text file, or select csv to generate a CSV file.
If you selected txt as the File Format, then in the Data field delimiter drop-down list, select the character to be used as a delimiter in the text file. To use a comma as the delimiting character, select Comma. To use a semicolon as the delimiting character, select Semicolon.
Under Plot data export tabular format, select the layout of the data in the spreadsheet. Select Vertical to list data in rows, with one data point per row. Select Horizontal to list data in columns, with one data point per column.
Under Output, select between creating a single LIMS data file that contains all the selected items (Single file) and creating a separate file for each data item (Separate files).
Under File Naming, use the drop-down lists to select the structure of the default file name. You can select up to four fields to include in the file name (Field 1 through Field 4). Each field is separated by an underscore character in the file name. Selecting <None> for any of the fields excludes that field from the file name. If you selected Separate files as the output, then the file names also include the data item identifier (e.g., Amplification Plots). If you selected Single file as the output, then the file name also includes the term "AllInOne".
Click Export Data.
Export to an RDML file
MIQE guidelines recommend the RDML file format for publication of qPCR data.
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Tip: RDML files can contain a large variety of data items. This help topic does not describe all the available fields that you can include. See www.rdml.org and the publication in Nucleic Acids Research [Nucleic Acids Res. 2009 April; 37(7): 2065–2069] for more information on RDML files.
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When you export data/results to an RDML file, the program prompts you to select a folder location for the file. You can then open the file in an RDML-compliant program.
To configure and export data to an RDML file:
On the Export Data screen, next to File Type, select RDML. The Experimenter fields appear in the center of the screen.
Type the First Name and Last Name of the experimenter into the fields in the center of the screen.
Select and configure the optional fields as desired:
To expand the options for any category Click the + icon.
Select the check boxes for fields that you want to add.
Type the information into the new fields as they appear.
Click Export Data. The Save As dialog box opens.
Type a file name into the file name field and select the location where you want to save the file. Click Save. The program creates the file and saves it in the designated folder.
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Learn how to effectively operate your Agilent AriaMx:
AriaMx Real-Time PCR System Setup and User Guide on Agilent.com Aria Real-Time PCR Software User Manual on Agilent.com |
For Research Use Only. Not for use in diagnostic procedures.
PR7001-1397
