DNA-arrays (or DNA-chips or microarrays) are flat slabs of glass, silicon or plastic onto which thousands of multiple short single-stranded (ss) DNA sequences (corresponding to small regions of a genome) have been attached. After performing a mRNA extraction in induced and non-induced cells, the mRNA is again reverse transcribed, but here the reaction is tweaked, so that the emerging cDNA contains nucleotides marked with different fluorophores for controls and experiment. Targets will hybridize by base-pairing with those probes that resemble them the most. The array can then be stimulated by a laser and scanned for fluorescence at two different wavelengths (control and induced). The ratio or log-ratio between the two fluorescence intensities corresponds to the induction level.

MSA can be used to align promoter regions and highlight regions of conservation that may be indicative of transcription factor binding sites.

Primer Extension Assay is a simple method of assessing expression levels. The total RNA produced by the culture is isolated. A short synthetic oligonucleotide primer (complementary to a short sequence on the target RNA) is radiolabelled (usually with 32P) and the primer anneals to the RNA. Reverse transcriptase then extends the RNA producing cDNA. The cDNA is analyzed on a polyacrylamide gel. The amount of cDNA in a band on the gel is proportional to the amount of initial RNA, thus providing expression levels of RNA from the culture.