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DISCOVERY KEY TO DNA FINGERPRINTING from NSF in basic biological
research was critical to the discovery of a microbe's enzyme
that makes modern DNA fingerprinting possible. DNA
fingerprinting has enabled the legal community to identify, with
unprecedented accuracy, a suspect's involvement in a crime, or
to demonstrate the innocence of wrongly accused individuals. DNA
fingerprints aresequences of DNA molecules that are unique to
each individual.The patterns of these sequences can be
identified when tiny amounts of DNA are amplified with a
technique known as the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). PCR uses
DNA polymerase, an enzyme that assembles DNA chains over many
cycles of heating and cooling. Most DNA polymerase cannot
withstand high temperatures. But NSF-supported research
discovered a bacterium (Thermus aquaticus), in hot springs
Separate research to develop a heat-resistant DNA polymerase was
pursued in the private or commercial sector. PCR and DNA