Qiagen introduces ProofStart DNA polymerase, a new proofreading enzyme for robust, high-fidelity PCR promising extremely low error rates Proofreading enzymes utili
Proofreading enzymes utilize a 3' x 5' exonuclease activity to remove incorrectly incorporated bases.
This activity can also degrade primers during setup and the start of PCR, which can cause nonspecific priming, smearing, or failure to amplify any product at all.
ProofStart DNA polymerase is chemically modified to inactivate both the polymerase and the exonuclease activity.
Primers remain intact and mispriming cannot occur during setup.
A simple hot start allows PCR to start with high proofreading activity.
This makes ProofStart DNA polymerase more robust than typical proofreading enzymes, to provide reliable, highly specific PCR.
The robust performance gives trouble-free amplification with extremely low error rates, comparable to that of other proofreading enzymes and less than a tenth that of Taq DNA polymerase.
With optimised reagents and PCR protocol, ProofStart DNA polymerase has been developed to provide the lowest error rates as well as optimal PCR product yield.
A uniquely balanced combination of cations in the ProofStart PCR buffer provides stringent primer-annealing conditions over a wide range of conditions.
Thus, optimisation is minimal or even eliminated.
For templates with a high degree of secondary structure or a high GC content, ProofStart DNA polymerase is provided with Q-Solution.
This innovative PCR reagent modifies the melting behavior of DNA to improve amplification of such problematic templates.
ProofStart DNA Polymerase is sold under licensing arrangements with Hoffmann-La Roche, Roche Molecular Systems, and Perkin-Elmer.
