Competitive PCR can be used to overcome the difficulties of quantification of DNA or RNA in standard PCR. A known amount of a DNA fragment (competitor) is added to the sample that shares most of the nucleotide sequence with the target. When co-amplified, both templates compete for the same set of primers. Because of this competition, the ratio of the amounts of the two amplified products reflects the ratio of the amounts of the target DNA and competitor. Since the initial amount of the competitor is known, the amount of the target DNA can be estimated according to the target:competitor ratio. For best performance AL-Diagnostic recommends to use Spreadex® or PCR CheckIT™ gels.
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