Transcription-mediated amplification
Transcription-mediated amplification (TMA) is an isothermal (performed at constant temperature), single-tube nucleic acid amplification system utilizing two enzymes, RNA polymerase and reverse transcriptase.
"Amplification" means creating many more copies of a strand of nucleic acid than was present at first, in order to readily detect it or test it. Rapidly amplifying the target RNA/DNA allows a lab to simultaneously detect multiple pathogenic organisms in a single tube. TMA technology allows a clinical laboratory to perform nucleic acid test (NAT) assays for blood screening with fewer steps, less processing time, and faster results.
It is used in molecular biology, forensics, and medicine for the rapid identification and diagnosis of pathogenic organisms.
In contrast to similar techniques such as polymerase chain reaction and ligase chain reaction, this method involves RNA transcription (via RNA polymerase) and DNA synthesis (via reverse transcriptase) to produce an RNA amplicon (the source or product of amplification) from a target nucleic acid. This technique can be used to target both RNA and DNA.
Transcription-mediated amplification has several advantages compared to other amplification methods including:
From: http://www.gen-probe.com