FUNDAMENTALS OF MOLECULAR
DIAGNOSIS: FINAL REVIEW EXAM
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Fluorescent In Situ Hybridization (FISH) - ANSWER-Uses RNA Northern Blot or
DNA Southern Blot techniques to detect targets of interest in cytology/histology
specimens or other nucleic acid
DNA fingerprinting: Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP): - ANSWER-
DNA fingerprinting: Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP)
PCR - ANSWER-Target amplification using DNA polymerase
use of thermal cycling
LCR - ANSWER-Amplification of a short DNA probe using DNA ligase
use of thermal cycling
Transcription- based or Transcription-mediated amplification(TMA) - ANSWER-
Target amplification using reverse transcriptase and RNA polymerase
Strand Displacement (SDA) - ANSWER-Target amplification using DNA polymerase
that continuously displaces strands of DNA containing the target sequence
Branched DNA (bDNA) - ANSWER-Signal amplification using alkaline phosphatase
Loop Mediated (LAMP) - ANSWER-Target amplification of multiple DNA sequences
in a loop pattern using DNA polymerase
Nucleic acid sequence based (NASBA) - ANSWER-Target amplification using 3
enzymes
Q-beta Replicase - ANSWER-Probe amplification- The concentration of an RNA
probe increases if the target is present
Hybridization - ANSWER-pairing or annealing of two strands of DNA
Electrophoresis - ANSWER-movement in a matrix such as a gel that is caused by an
electrical field.
Chemiluminescence - ANSWER-Release of light energy at the end of a chemical
reaction that is detected by a luminometer. Uses a label such as acridinium ester
Enzyme - ANSWER-Uses enzyme and substrate principles to label the appropriate
target or probe. Can be combined with fluorescence or dyes for detection
DIAGNOSIS: FINAL REVIEW EXAM
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Fluorescent In Situ Hybridization (FISH) - ANSWER-Uses RNA Northern Blot or
DNA Southern Blot techniques to detect targets of interest in cytology/histology
specimens or other nucleic acid
DNA fingerprinting: Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP): - ANSWER-
DNA fingerprinting: Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP)
PCR - ANSWER-Target amplification using DNA polymerase
use of thermal cycling
LCR - ANSWER-Amplification of a short DNA probe using DNA ligase
use of thermal cycling
Transcription- based or Transcription-mediated amplification(TMA) - ANSWER-
Target amplification using reverse transcriptase and RNA polymerase
Strand Displacement (SDA) - ANSWER-Target amplification using DNA polymerase
that continuously displaces strands of DNA containing the target sequence
Branched DNA (bDNA) - ANSWER-Signal amplification using alkaline phosphatase
Loop Mediated (LAMP) - ANSWER-Target amplification of multiple DNA sequences
in a loop pattern using DNA polymerase
Nucleic acid sequence based (NASBA) - ANSWER-Target amplification using 3
enzymes
Q-beta Replicase - ANSWER-Probe amplification- The concentration of an RNA
probe increases if the target is present
Hybridization - ANSWER-pairing or annealing of two strands of DNA
Electrophoresis - ANSWER-movement in a matrix such as a gel that is caused by an
electrical field.
Chemiluminescence - ANSWER-Release of light energy at the end of a chemical
reaction that is detected by a luminometer. Uses a label such as acridinium ester
Enzyme - ANSWER-Uses enzyme and substrate principles to label the appropriate
target or probe. Can be combined with fluorescence or dyes for detection
