TRIMETHYLGLYCINE COULD OVERCOME THE DIFFICULTY IN PCR AMPLIFICATION OF G+C-RICH GENES / 解放军医学杂志

ABSTRACT

To explore the effects of different organic solvents including trimethylglycine on the PCR amplification of G+C rich DNA templates,two high G+C containing DNA templates (cyclin dependent kinase inhibitor gene ARF and IGFR II) were amplified using standard PCR and modified PCR with the addition of glycerin, dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO), formamide and trimethylglycine respectively. There were no specific amplified products, when standard PCR and modified PCR with the addition of glycerin, DMSO and formamide were used to amplify the G+C rich ARF and IGFR II genes. But the two genes could be specifically amplified with the addition of optimal concentration of trimethylglycine in the PCR mixture. These results indicate that trimethylglycine can abolish or reduce the formation of second structures in G+C rich DNA regions and promote the amplification of high G+C containing DNA templates.