The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was originally developed in 1983 by the American biochemist Kary Mullis. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1993 for his pioneering work.
PCR is used in molecular biology to make many copies of (amplify) small sections of DNA? or a gene?.
Using PCR it is possible to generate thousands to millions of copies of a particular section of DNA from a very small amount of DNA.
PCR is a common tool used in medical and biological research labs. It is used in the early stages of processing DNA for sequencing?, for detecting the presence or absence of a gene to help identify pathogens ?during infection, and when generating forensic DNA profiles from tiny samples of DNA.
