A Direct Route to Results: Simplifying Nucleic Acid Workflows with Direct Amplification
What you will learn:
- How a direct amplification sample preparation approach can be applied to reduce time and consumables required
- What to expect in your results for direct amplification sample preparation compared to traditional extraction methods
- How to approach various challenging sample types
Summary
The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted a need for faster sample preparation methods that did not rely on nucleic acid purification from the sample prior to amplification and analysis by RT-qPCR to detect nucleic acid targets. In response, a new sample preparation method was quickly developed to prepare nasopharyngeal swabs for viral detection by RT-qPCR. Following the development of the workflow for this initial sample type, we explored the feasibility of this fast and simple sample preparation method for analyzing other sample types by direct amplification. In this webinar, we discussed not only the original sample preparation method for viral detection from transport media, but also the applicability of this direct amplification sample preparation method for other challenging samples such as FFPE, saliva, blood or plants.
Laboratories can now begin to look at their sample processing workflow and determine what areas can be improved by eliminating unnecessary, time-consuming steps. Advantages and disadvantages of direct amplification approaches were examined, as well as protocol variations for the different sample types. With these new reagents and methods, labs can now move to improve efficiency and speed time to results by streamlining their sample preparation workflow.
Speaker
Melanie Preston, PhD
Senior Applications Scientist
Melanie Preston is a Senior Applications Scientist at Promega Corporation. The Scientific Applications team develops new solutions with existing Promega products to enable scientists in diverse research areas. Protocols and example data for product adaptations are freely shared as Application Notes.
Prior to joining Promega, Dr. Preston performed her postdoctoral work at University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she discovered novel enzymes that add nucleotides to the 3’ end of RNA, leading to two patents. Dr. Preston completed her Ph.D. in Biochemistry at University of Rochester for her studies on the biological importance of transfer RNA post-transcriptional modifications. She received her B.S. in Biology and Philosophy from the University of Scranton.