Pcr

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A laboratory technique used to amplify specific DNA sequences by cyclic temperature changes causing DNA denaturation, primer annealing, and extension
2. A method in molecular biology that generates millions of copies of a DNA segment through repeated heating and cooling cycles enabling detailed genetic analysis
3. A procedure employed in genetic research to create numerous identical segments of DNA by repeatedly heating and cooling samples with primers and polymerase enzymes

Etymology: The abbreviation "PCR" stands for polymerase chain reaction, but the source behind it is a different word. Its "pcr" form is an abbreviation of "phosphocreatine", the energy-storing compound found in muscle and brain tissue, and the word's name comes from its two halves. "Phospho-" refers to the phosphate group the molecule carries, a name that traces back through "phosphorus", the element whose name means "light-bringer" in Greek, from "phôs" (light) and "phoros" (bearing). "Creatine" comes from Greek "kreas" (flesh), because the compound was first isolated from meat. Both parts were assembled in modern scientific English, so the compound is a technical coinage rather than an ancient one. Its abbreviated form, "PCR", later became the more famous label for the laboratory technique, a usage that has no connection to the phosphate compound itself.

Synonyms: polymerase chain reaction