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Article: PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction)
- Article from:
- World of Forensic Science
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PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction)
PCR, or polymerase chain reaction, is a biochemical technique that can generate millions of copies of a template strand of
DNA
. The technique relies on the same enzymes that cells use to replicate DNA, however it is performed in a simple test tube using controlled cycles of heating and cooling. PCR has revolutionized the field of biotechnology, making it quick and inexpensive to replicate, or amplify, specific segments of DNA.
PCR was conceptualized by molecular biologist
Kary Mullis
in 1983. While driving the highway between San Francisco and Mendocino, California, Mullis realized that very simple molecules could be used to replicate DNA in vitro, ...