Estimations are only run after you have contacted Dr. Hjelmen, discussed your samples, and agreed upon a rate. Please reach out before sending anything.

Estimations are charged at a per-species rate, billed upon completion. Rates are determined during initial contact.

Flow cytometry requires intact nuclei. Ethanol-fixed samples are not compatible with this method and cannot be processed.

Live samples or samples that were flash-frozen immediately upon collection are required for successful estimations.

Frozen samples must be shipped on dry ice to ensure they remain frozen during transit. Ice packs are not sufficient.

Best results come from running at least five individuals of each sex. Smaller numbers can be accommodated but may affect reliability.

More individuals per sex is always better — degraded samples, standard overlap, or other technical issues can reduce effective sample size.

Sending more than five individuals of each sex provides backup in case of DNA degradation or issues with the internal size standard (e.g., overlapping peak size, standard degradation).

Estimations are run between teaching and other lab responsibilities. In most cases turnaround is relatively quick, but timelines are discussed at the time of agreement.