Targeted analysis sequencing (sometimes called target amplicon sequencing) (TAS) is a
next-generation DNA sequencing technique focusing on
amplicons
In molecular biology, an amplicon is a piece of DNA or RNA that is the source and/or product of amplification or replication events. It can be formed artificially, using various methods including polymerase chain reactions (PCR) or ligase cha ...
and specific genes. It is useful in population genetics since it can target a large diversity of organisms. The TAS approach incorporates
bioinformatics
Bioinformatics () is an interdisciplinary field that develops methods and software tools for understanding biological data, in particular when the data sets are large and complex. As an interdisciplinary field of science, bioinformatics combin ...
techniques to produce a large amount of data at a fraction of the cost involved in
Sanger sequencing
Sanger sequencing is a method of DNA sequencing that involves electrophoresis and is based on the random incorporation of chain-terminating dideoxynucleotides by DNA polymerase during in vitro DNA replication. After first being developed by Frede ...
. TAS is also useful in DNA studies because it allows for amplification of the needed gene area via
PCR PCR or pcr may refer to:
Science
* Phosphocreatine, a phosphorylated creatine molecule
* Principal component regression, a statistical technique
Medicine
* Polymerase chain reaction
** COVID-19 testing, often performed using the polymerase chain r ...
, which is followed by next-gen sequencing platforms. Next-gen sequencing use shorter reads 50–400
base pairs
A base pair (bp) is a fundamental unit of double-stranded nucleic acids consisting of two nucleobases bound to each other by hydrogen bonds. They form the building blocks of the DNA double helix and contribute to the folded structure of both D ...
which allow for quicker sequencing of multiple specimens. Thus TAS allows for a cheaper sequencing approach for that is easily scalable and offers both reliability and speed.
References
DNA sequencing
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