LightCycler 480 software on a Mac: how to analyse your runs
The LightCycler 480 is a workhorse in many labs and core facilities, and its software lives on a Windows PC next to it. Here is how to work with its runs from a Mac.
The LightCycler 480 software runs on Windows only, with its own experiment database. To analyse on a Mac, export the experiment from the instrument software as an .ixo file, which carries the plate setup and raw fluorescence, and open it in an app that reads .ixo on macOS such as CycleView. LightCycler 96 runs are saved as .lc96p files and open the same way. You then see every amplification and melt curve, set threshold and baseline, and run ΔΔCt with statistics.
Where LightCycler 480 data lives
Unlike instruments that write one file per run, the LightCycler 480 software keeps experiments in its database on the instrument PC. To take a run elsewhere you export it. The standard experiment export is the .ixo file, which keeps the samples, the plate layout, the run protocol and the fluorescence readings together.
Exporting as .ixo rather than a text table is the important part: the text export holds results, the .ixo holds the data behind them.
Opening the .ixo on a Mac
- On the instrument PC, export the experiment as .ixo to a shared drive or USB stick.
- On your Mac, drag the .ixo onto CycleView.
- Check the plate map and the curves, set the threshold and baseline for each target, and exclude any failed wells.
- Define reference genes and a calibrator group to get ΔΔCt fold changes.
- Export figures as SVG or PNG, and the data as RDML or CSV.
LightCycler 96 files
The LightCycler 96 saves each run as an .lc96p file. These open directly in CycleView with the same curve review, Cq and ΔΔCt tools.
Cp, Ct and Cq
LightCycler software reports a crossing point (Cp), often from a second-derivative maximum method; other vendors report a threshold cycle (Ct). The MIQE guidelines use the neutral term quantification cycle (Cq). The methods give slightly different numbers, so whichever you use, state the method and apply it consistently across a study.
Open your run on your own laptop
CycleView opens QuantStudio, LightCycler, Rotor-Gene and RDML files on Mac and Windows. The viewer is free, and nothing is uploaded.
Get CycleView
Mac and Windows · runs locally · for research use, not for diagnosis.
FAQ
Can I run the LightCycler 480 software in a VM on my Mac?
On an Intel Mac with Windows in a virtual machine, possibly, but the software expects its database and licence setup. Exporting .ixo and analysing natively is far simpler.
What is an .ixo file?
The LightCycler 480 experiment export: plate setup, protocol and fluorescence data in one file, so the run can be reopened and reanalysed elsewhere.
Is CycleView affiliated with Roche?
No. CycleView is independent and reads LightCycler files for compatibility.