Methods of use of phenanthridium DNA intercalators for fluorescence detection

A method of separating a nucleic acid from a sample comprising:

• contacting a capture reagent with the sample wherein the capture agent comprises a compound comprised of aromatic and heteroaromatic segments functionalized with positively charged chains having the formula:
• ##STR13## a solid support connected to the intercalating moiety by means of a linker molecule in a manner that allows the moiety to bind acid molecules in a sample, incubating the sample-capture regent mixture for a time sufficient to allow the capture reagent to bind with the nucleic acid in the sample to form capture reagent-nucleic acid complexes;
• and
• isolating the complexes from the sample.

A method for determining one or more characteristics of cells using a fluorescence analysis comprising:

• moving cells, substantially one at a time, in a liquid flow stream, said cells including at least one fluorescent marker comprising:
• ##STR14## each marker having different emission spectra to permit detection thereof without substantial electronic spectral overlap;
• directing an incident light beam of a single wavelength at the cells inset flow stream to excite the fluorescent markers with the single wavelength of light such that different wavelengths of fluorescence are emitted from the cell concomitant to the fluorescent energy transfer;
• spectrally separating with optical elements the different wavelengths of emitted fluorescence to simultaneously refine the emitted fluoresce to enable this separate detection of the different wavelengths;
• simultaneously detecting one or more different fluorescent emissions associated with cells moving in the flow stream;
• and
• using said detected fluorescence to determine one or more characteristics of said cells.