| name | primer_design_advice |
| description | Advise on PCR primer design (Tm, length, GC%, avoiding secondary structure). |
| category | bio/molecular_lab |
| version | 1 |
| requires_tools | ["python_repl"] |
| requires_network | false |
| user_invocable | true |
| species | any |
| modality | wet_lab |
| stage | design |
| stability | experimental |
| safety_level | low |
Primer Design Advice
When to use
User asks about designing PCR primers or evaluating primer parameters (Tm, GC content, length).
Inputs
- sequence: Optional target sequence; or primer_sequence for evaluation.
- task: "design" or "evaluate".
Steps
-
Evaluate: If primer sequence given, use python_repl to compute: length, GC%, simple Tm estimate (e.g. 2*(A+T)+4*(G+C) for short oligos). Note: no hairpin/dimer check without a proper library; recommend using Primer3 or IDT for full design.
-
Design: If design requested, explain best practices: length 18–25 bp, Tm 58–62 °C, GC 40–60%, avoid 3' complementarity. Suggest using Primer3 or a lab tool for actual design; offer to compute Tm/GC for candidate sequences.
-
Present: For evaluation: length, GC%, Tm. For design: bullet list of guidelines and tool suggestions.
Output format
- For evaluation: length, GC%, Tm
- For design: guidelines and tool recommendations