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Nucleic Acid Hybridization definitions

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  • Nucleic Acid Hybridization
    Process where complementary nucleic acid strands form bonds, enabling detection of specific sequences.
  • Complementary Nucleic Acids
    Nucleotide pairs such as A-T and C-G that specifically bond due to base pairing rules.
  • Southern Blotting
    Technique for detecting specific DNA sequences by transferring DNA to paper and using a labeled probe.
  • Northern Blotting
    Method similar to Southern blotting but used to detect RNA sequences instead of DNA.
  • DNA Probe
    Labeled single-stranded DNA fragment designed to bind a specific complementary sequence on a blot.
  • Gel Electrophoresis
    Laboratory method that separates DNA fragments by size using an electric field in a gel matrix.
  • Fluorescence
    Emission of light from a labeled probe indicating the presence of a target nucleic acid sequence.
  • Radioactive Label
    Tag attached to a probe that emits radiation, allowing detection of hybridized sequences.
  • Base Pair
    Unit formed by hydrogen bonding between two complementary nucleotides in DNA or RNA.
  • Kilobase
    Measurement unit representing one thousand base pairs of nucleic acid sequence.
  • Target Sequence
    Specific region of DNA or RNA that a probe is designed to detect during hybridization.
  • Mass-to-Charge Ratio
    Property used in gel electrophoresis to separate DNA fragments, though for DNA, separation is mainly by size.
  • Incubation
    Step where the blot is exposed to a probe solution to allow hybridization with complementary sequences.
  • Paper Transfer
    Process of moving separated nucleic acids from a gel onto a membrane for probing.