PCR Amplification
Polymerase chain reaction, or PCR, is used to amplify a specific sequence of DNA. Primers—short pieces of DNA complementary to each end of the target sequence—are combined with genomic DNA, Taq polymerase, and deoxynucleotides. Taq polymerase is a DNA polymerase isolated from the thermostable bacterium Thermus aquaticus that is able to withstand the high temperatures used in PCR. Thermus aquaticus grows in the Lower Geyser Basin of Yellowstone National Park. Reverse transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR) is similar to PCR, but cDNA is made from an RNA template before PCR begins.
Source
Boundless vets and curates high-quality, openly licensed content from around the Internet. This particular resource used the following sources:
"OpenStax College, Biotechnology. October 16, 2013."
http://cnx.org/content/m44552/latest/Figure_17_01_04.jpg
OpenStax CNX
CC BY 3.0.
