Viscous samples?

[l_zembek]

I have received a large set of extracted DNA samples that are extremely viscous, and am unable to pico or process them in any way. I've tried diluting, heating, shaking, proteinase K, Ampure bead cleanup, to no avail. Any other suggestions?

Also, does anyone know a easy, quantifiable way to check the viscosity of a sample? I'd like to have the collaborator test the samples before sending in the future.

[austinso]

It could be too much genomic DNA, which would mean that you need to shear it to play with it.

[l_zembek]

Thanks for your comment, "austinso." A 1:5 dilution followed by a 1.8X SPRI cleanup seems to have gotten most samples to a consistency suitable for pico quant. But shearing would've been my next try!