About CHD8
This gene encodes a member of the chromodomain-helicase-DNA binding protein family, which is characterized by a SNF2-like domain and two chromatin organization modifier domains. The encoded protein also contains brahma and kismet domains, which are common to the subfamily of chromodomain-helicase-DNA binding proteins to which this protein belongs. This gene has been shown to function in several processes that include transcriptional regulation, epigenetic remodeling, promotion of cell proliferation, and regulation of RNA synthesis. Allelic variants of this gene are associated with autism spectrum disorder. Alternative splicing results in multiple transcript variants. [provided by RefSeq, Dec 2016]

About FITC
Fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) has an excitation peak at 495 nm and an emission peak at 519 nm. The name FITC is a misnomer in that the isothiocyanate is a reactive form of this dye. Once FITC is conjugated to an antibody, it is simply Fluorescein conjugated. FITC is one of the most widely used dyes for fluorescent applications, therefore most instruments come standard with a 488 nm laser and FITC filter set up. FITC is commonly conjugated to secondary antibodies and used in applications such as flow cytometry, immunocytochemistry, and immunohistochemistry. FITC is relatively dim, sensitive to photobleaching and it is susceptible to changes is pH. There are better performing alternatives to FITC, like Vio®Bright 515, Alexa Fluor™ 488, iFluor® 488, CF®488A and DY-488. FITC is a long-time generic dye with no sole manufacturer or trademark.