Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is used for DNA amplification. PCR generates thousands to millions of copies of the target sequence in just a few hours. The adoption of polymerase chain reaction has increased due to continuous research and development funding in gene therapy and technological advancements in a polymerase chain reaction. It is widely used in the detection of pathogenic bacteria, molecular and genetic research, disease diagnosis, parental testing, and forensic DNA profiling. Moreover, with the increasing prevalence of chronic and infectious diseases, the demand for polymerase chain reactions is also increasing.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in 2018, around 51.8% of US adults had at least one chronic condition, and 27.2% had multiple chronic conditions. Moreover, chronic diseases, such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes, are the leading causes of death and disability in the United States. Polymerase chain reaction, or PCR, is a laboratory technique used to make multiple copies of DNA. It is very precise and can be used to amplify, or copy, a specific DNA target from a mixture of DNA molecules. PCR is a common tool used in medical and biological research labs.
Moreover, a polymerase chain reaction has been elaborated in many ways since its introduction and is now commonly used for a wide variety of applications, such as paternity testing, cloning, forensics, microarrays, sequencing, mutation detection, genotyping, and others. Its principle is based on the use of DNA polymerase which is the in vitro replication of DNA sequence. PCR allows DNA to be identified from tiny samples – a single molecule of DNA can be enough for PCR amplification. Thus, the polymerase chain reaction is extensively used in analyzing clinical specimens for the presence of infectious agents.
The polymerase chain reaction is a very sensitive technique that allows rapid amplification of a specific segment of DNA, which allows detection and identification of gene sequences using visual techniques based on size and charge. Thus, with the increasing PCR applications, the demand for PCR is also increasing worldwide.