LGC eBook - 2017 - 5

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Advances in PCR Technology
and Its Applications in
Healthcare Research
Meghaan Ferreria

he discovery of PCR in 1983 revolutionized
molecular biology and changed how
clinicians diagnose infectious diseases and
genetic disorders. Today, new advances in PCR
technology, including more sensitive assays and
high-throughput instruments, may further
revolutionize healthcare by enabling routine
blood tests for early cancer detection and
changing how doctors prescribe medications
based on an individual's genetics.

| GENengnews.com

The laboratory's most recent endeavor has
focused on enhancing the sensitivity of PCR
assays to enable selective amplification of cellfree circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) present in a
blood sample to detect somatic cancer-related
mutations. Dr. Kramer's lab developed what

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"It would be wonderful if, when you go for your
annual checkup and the doctor takes a blood
sample to check your cholesterol, they could
also look for the presence of DNA fragments

from cancer cells," imagined Fred Kramer, Ph.D.,
Professor of Microbiology, Biochemistry &
Molecular Genetics, Rutgers New Jersey
Medical School. Dr. Kramer's laboratory focuses
on developing extremely sensitive and selective
PCR assays: "we want them to be quantitative,
we want them to be multiplexed, but above all
we want them to be simple and inexpensive."

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LGC eBook - 2017

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of LGC eBook - 2017