By Caren B. Les, News Editor[email protected] Polymerase chain reaction (PCR), the workhorse of biological analysis, is used in areas ranging from criminal investigations and disease diagnosis to biological research. Sometimes referred to as “molecular photocopying,” it is the test, for example, that determines whether a strand of hair found at a crime scene matches that of a certain suspect. The technique, which incorporates optical components and fluorescence, uses a heat-resistant DNA polymerase from the thermophilic bacterium Thermus aquaticus to accurately replicate manifold small segments of DNA for genetic and molecular...Read full articleRelated content from Photonics MediaArticlesWearable Brain-Imaging Offers Alternative to 'Gold Standard' MethodResearchers at Washington University in St. Louis are developing an alternative to the current gold standard of brain imaging, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). 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