Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is now such a fundamental
technique in the biotechnology laboratory that L. A. Pray wrote
in 2004: "PCR is to biology what petroleum is to
transportation." PCR is a basis for multiple ways — ranging from
DNA fingerprinting and sequencing to mutagenesis — to analyze
and detect nucleic acids. Real-time PCR is an extremely valuable
analytical tool that not only reveals what DNA is present but
how much. Real-time PCR is becoming the most widely used PCR
application for genomic and gene expression analysis in research
laboratories; it also is rapidly establishing itself as a
technique in the clinical diagnostic lab. The need for faster,
more accurate, and more economical systems with a high
throughput has fueled the popularity of real-time PCR. Using
genomic DNA as the template for amplification, real-time PCR can
be used in infectious disease diagnostics to rapidly determine
levels of specific pathogens in various tissues. The molecular
diagnostic laboratory also relies heavily on