Biomaterial Database

Principles and applications of polymerase chain reaction: basic science for the practicing physician. 2008

Faoud T Ishmael, and Cristiana Stellato

Division of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland 21224, USA.

OBJECTIVE To review the technology of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and its use in diagnostic medicine and biomedical research. METHODS A literature review was performed using the PubMed database for English-language articles published between January 1, 1985, and November 31, 2007, using the following keywords: polymerase chain reaction, real-time polymerase chain reaction, and applications of real-time polymerase chain reaction. METHODS Select review articles and primary articles relevant to medical applications of PCR were chosen. RESULTS As a revolutionary technique, PCR provides a rapid and accurate means of amplifying DNA. It has enabled the cloning and manipulation of genes for biomedical research and has facilitated the diagnosis of genetic, infectious, and oncologic diseases. The use of reverse transcriptases to evaluate RNA levels and the extension of PCR technology to quantify DNA amplification in real time has brought major advances to the application of PCR. By allowing the determination and quantification of changes in gene expression, these techniques have provided a greater understanding of disease processes and now serve as a foundation for diagnostics and basic science research. CONCLUSIONS Both PCR and real-time PCR have dramatically changed the field of basic science and diagnostic medicine. These technologies are now a well-established, indispensable part of research and clinical laboratories.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D012680	Sensitivity and Specificity	Binary classification measures to assess test results. Sensitivity or recall rate is the proportion of true positives. Specificity is the probability of correctly determining the absence of a condition. (From Last, Dictionary of Epidemiology, 2d ed)	Specificity,Sensitivity,Specificity and Sensitivity
D015203	Reproducibility of Results	The statistical reproducibility of measurements (often in a clinical context), including the testing of instrumentation or techniques to obtain reproducible results. The concept includes reproducibility of physiological measurements, which may be used to develop rules to assess probability or prognosis, or response to a stimulus; reproducibility of occurrence of a condition; and reproducibility of experimental results.	Reliability and Validity,Reliability of Result,Reproducibility Of Result,Reproducibility of Finding,Validity of Result,Validity of Results,Face Validity,Reliability (Epidemiology),Reliability of Results,Reproducibility of Findings,Test-Retest Reliability,Validity (Epidemiology),Finding Reproducibilities,Finding Reproducibility,Of Result, Reproducibility,Of Results, Reproducibility,Reliabilities, Test-Retest,Reliability, Test-Retest,Result Reliabilities,Result Reliability,Result Validities,Result Validity,Result, Reproducibility Of,Results, Reproducibility Of,Test Retest Reliability,Validity and Reliability,Validity, Face
D016133	Polymerase Chain Reaction	In vitro method for producing large amounts of specific DNA or RNA fragments of defined length and sequence from small amounts of short oligonucleotide flanking sequences (primers). The essential steps include thermal denaturation of the double-stranded target molecules, annealing of the primers to their complementary sequences, and extension of the annealed primers by enzymatic synthesis with DNA polymerase. The reaction is efficient, specific, and extremely sensitive. Uses for the reaction include disease diagnosis, detection of difficult-to-isolate pathogens, mutation analysis, genetic testing, DNA sequencing, and analyzing evolutionary relationships.	Anchored PCR,Inverse PCR,Nested PCR,PCR,Anchored Polymerase Chain Reaction,Inverse Polymerase Chain Reaction,Nested Polymerase Chain Reaction,PCR, Anchored,PCR, Inverse,PCR, Nested,Polymerase Chain Reactions,Reaction, Polymerase Chain,Reactions, Polymerase Chain
D019937	Diagnostic Techniques and Procedures	Methods, procedures, and tests performed to diagnose disease, disordered function, or disability.	Diagnostic Testing,Diagnostic Technics and Procedures,Technics and Procedures, Diagnostic,Techniques and Procedures, Diagnostic,Testing, Diagnostic
D020133	Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction	A variation of the PCR technique in which cDNA is made from RNA via reverse transcription. The resultant cDNA is then amplified using standard PCR protocols.	Polymerase Chain Reaction, Reverse Transcriptase,Reverse Transcriptase PCR,PCR, Reverse Transcriptase,Transcriptase PCR, Reverse
D020869	Gene Expression Profiling	The determination of the pattern of genes expressed at the level of GENETIC TRANSCRIPTION, under specific circumstances or in a specific cell.	Gene Expression Analysis,Gene Expression Pattern Analysis,Transcript Expression Analysis,Transcriptome Profiling,Transcriptomics,mRNA Differential Display,Gene Expression Monitoring,Transcriptome Analysis,Analyses, Gene Expression,Analyses, Transcript Expression,Analyses, Transcriptome,Analysis, Gene Expression,Analysis, Transcript Expression,Analysis, Transcriptome,Differential Display, mRNA,Differential Displays, mRNA,Expression Analyses, Gene,Expression Analysis, Gene,Gene Expression Analyses,Gene Expression Monitorings,Gene Expression Profilings,Monitoring, Gene Expression,Monitorings, Gene Expression,Profiling, Gene Expression,Profiling, Transcriptome,Profilings, Gene Expression,Profilings, Transcriptome,Transcript Expression Analyses,Transcriptome Analyses,Transcriptome Profilings,mRNA Differential Displays