18 Facts About PCR

PCR was invented in 1983 by the American biochemist Kary Mullis at Cetus Corporation; Mullis and biochemist Michael Smith, who had developed other essential ways of manipulating DNA, were jointly awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1993.

PCR is fundamental to many of the procedures used in genetic testing and research, including analysis of ancient samples of DNA and identification of infectious agents.

PCR is a common and often indispensable technique used in medical laboratory research for a broad variety of applications including biomedical research and criminal forensics.

PCR employs two main reagents—primers and a DNA polymerase.

The size of the PCR products is determined by comparison with a DNA ladder, a molecular weight marker which contains DNA fragments of known sizes, which runs on the gel alongside the PCR products.

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In practice, PCR can fail for various reasons, such as sensitivity or contamination.

PCR allows isolation of DNA fragments from genomic DNA by selective amplification of a specific region of DNA.

Quantitative PCR is an established tool for DNA quantification that measures the accumulation of DNA product after each round of PCR amplification.

QPCR allows the quantification and detection of a specific DNA sequence in real time since it measures concentration while the synthesis process is taking place.

PCR analysis is essential to preimplantation genetic diagnosis, where individual cells of a developing embryo are tested for mutations.

PCR allows for rapid and highly specific diagnosis of infectious diseases, including those caused by bacteria or viruses.

Development of PCR-based genetic fingerprinting protocols has seen widespread application in forensics:.

PCR has been applied to many areas of research in molecular genetics:.

One major limitation of PCR is that prior information about the target sequence is necessary in order to generate the primers that will allow its selective amplification.

However, this early manifestation of the basic PCR principle did not receive much attention at the time and the invention of the polymerase chain reaction in 1983 is generally credited to Kary Mullis.

Mullis has written that he conceived the idea for PCR while cruising along the Pacific Coast Highway one night in his car.

PCR was playing in his mind with a new way of analyzing changes in DNA when he realized that he had instead invented a method of amplifying any DNA region through repeated cycles of duplication driven by DNA polymerase.

PCR technique was patented by Kary Mullis and assigned to Cetus Corporation, where Mullis worked when he invented the technique in 1983.