target amplification
target amplification
(1) A generic term for any method used to increase the copy number of a molecular species. The gold standard for target amplification is polymerase chain reaction; non-PCR methods include transcription-mediated amplification and nucleic acid sequence-based amplification.(2) A generic term for any method used to identify a molecular species by increasing the number of target molecules, which includes:
• Hybridisation to species-specific probes that are immobilised on membranes, microtiter plates or are in solution;
• Analysis of RFLPs of amplified target genes;
• Direct sequencing of PCR-amplified gene segments.