Putting PCR into real-time
Three letters have been very busy in 2020: P. C. and R. The Polymerase Chain Reaction. It’s a tiny, thermally controlled, cyclical, enzyme-driven, chemical reaction which lets scientists identify the Read More …
Category: Laboratory methods
The mechanics of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR)…a primer
The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a technique for copying a piece of DNA a billion-fold. As the name suggests, the process creates a chain of many pieces, in this Read More …
Yes, PCR tests can detect “the COVID virus”
I was asked to write some comments for a fact check article about some of the myths going around about PCR-based testing and whether PCR tests can detect “the COVID Read More …
And another thing…on false positives
Sometimes the full story can’t fit into a media article. A lot of words can be said during an interview with a journalist but sometimes it’s just really hard to Read More …
Kits and reagents and viruses
The COVID-19 pandemic has driven the use of the words “kit” and “reagent”. I completely feel for you if you still have no real idea of what is meant by Read More …
Viral pneumonia cluster in Wuhan, central China: 44 cases and counting
Welcome to 2020 in which we already have reports of our first cluster of viral-pneumonia-of-unknown-cause cases, generating worldwide media and evoking memories of the sudden acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) coronavirus Read More …
The 2019 Flunami was more than just increased testing
The Flunami (see a definition here before you decide upon your own dear reader) has been a rising tide of influenza cases. It was more than just increased testing though. Read More …
PCR primers…a primer!
The polymerase chain reaction (PCR, described here) works mainly because of two components – a heat-stable DNA polymerase enzyme (adds new nucleotides to a chain of nucleotides) and a pair Read More …
Respiratory viruses: the viruses we detect in the human respiratory tract
A list of the viruses we can and do detect in the (mostly upper) human respiratory tract. The standard testing panel/diagnostic menu comprises the influenza A and B viruses, parainfluenza Read More …