Software for designing optimized sets of oligonucleotide probes for use in
genosensors (oligonucleotide microarrays) is disclosed. The selection of
probe sequences is based on multiple criteria including thermal stability
of the probe-target pairs, similarity degree of the probes with respect
to other DNA sequences, and evaluation of the secondary structure of
target molecules. The programs were written in the programming language
Borland Delphi by means of Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) techniques.
The Genosensor Probe Design computer program disclosed herein facilitates
the design of optimized arrays of probes which accurately represents the
characteristics of the nucleic acid molecule under study, such as its
identity or its differences in sequence or abundance with respect to
other molecules.