Direct PCR on Hair: A New Animal-Friendly Genotyping Method

Gene transfer in animals is commonly used to understand the role of genes in development, physiology and disease. This involves a primary step of screening for transgenes in the animal’s tissue using PCR, normally this involves DNA extraction from a biopsy, ear punch or toe tissue. This can cause pain and stress to the animal, as well as being a time consuming method. This application note describes a time-saving method for genotyping from hair samples, the collection of these will cause minimal discomfort to the animal.