Polonies

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Small, localized DNA colonies created during amplification in certain sequencing techniques ; highly discrete biological clusters or groups formed on a substrate ; miniature replicates of genetic material used for parallel analysis
2. Isolated aggregations of DNA segments produced during high-throughput sequencing processes ; distinct microcolonies that develop on solid surfaces for molecular studies ; compact genetic clusters enabling simultaneous detection or identification
3. Tiny, physically separated clusters of amplified DNA used in multiplexed biological assays ; specific, individual groupings of genetic copies grown during laboratory methods ; specialized groupings designed for precise genomic experimentation

Etymology: "Polonies" is the plural of "polony," and the noun has two quite different histories. The older sense is the sausage. "Polony" is a corruption of "bologna," the Italian city's name lent to a smoked meat product, and the sausage it names has been sold under that clipped name in Britain for generations. The word's shape drifted away from its Italian source through ordinary mispronunciation. The "small DNA clusters" sense is a much newer coinage, a blend of "polymerase" and "colony." In molecular biology, a polony is a colony of DNA molecules amplified in a gel or on a surface, and the name captures the way many copies cluster together in one spot. The word's sausage ancestry and its laboratory meaning share nothing except the sound.

Synonyms: sausages, bologna, luncheon meat, cold cuts, deli meats