Auto Parameter Suggestion

Feature documentation: Auto Parameter Suggestion

Smart parameter recommendations when primer design fails.

Overview

When Primer3 fails to find suitable primers, PrimerLab analyzes the failure and suggests parameter adjustments.

How It Works

1. Analyze Failure — Parse Primer3 error messages
2. Identify Cause — Determine which constraint failed
3. Suggest Fix — Recommend specific parameter changes

Example Output

❌ Design failed: No primers found

💡 Suggestions:
  • Tm constraint too tight - try relaxing to 55-65°C
  • Consider increasing product_size_range to 150-800 bp
  • GC content may be limiting - try 35-65%

Common Suggestions

Failure Reason	Suggested Action
Tm out of range	Widen Tm constraints
GC content issues	Widen GC range
No products in size	Increase product size range
Probe Tm issues	Adjust probe Tm range

Automatic in CLI

Suggestions appear automatically when design fails:

$ primerlab run pcr --config strict.yaml

🔬 PrimerLab v0.1.6
...
❌ Design failed

💡 Auto-suggestions:
  1. Relax Tm range: 55.0 - 65.0 (current: 59.0 - 61.0)
  2. Increase product size: 100 - 800 bp

Applying Suggestions

Edit your config based on suggestions:

# Before (too strict)
tm: {min: 59.0, opt: 60.0, max: 61.0}

# After (relaxed)
tm: {min: 55.0, opt: 60.0, max: 65.0}