Wendy Gloffke | Apr 20, 2003 | 9 min read
Courtesy of Applied Biosystems THE TAQMAN PROCEDURE: Applied Biosystems' TaqMan procedure relies on the 5'-to-3' exonuclease activity of Taq polymerase. The TaqMan probe bears a fluoro-phore at the 5' end and a quencher on the 3' end, rendering the molecule non-fluorescent. During amplification, the probe binds to the template between the two PCR primers. When the polymerase encounters the probe, it starts chewing away at the end, releasing the fluorophore into solution, where it is free