This video explains how a Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) works and discusses some of the common issues to think about when designing a PCR experiment.
0:00 Introduction to DNA sequences
5:55 Choosing a region of DNA to amplify
8:13 The Thermal Cycling reaction (denaturation, annealing and extension)
13:15 Understanding each round of the PCR reaction doubles the amount of DNA made
18:07 How to estimate primer annealing temperatures
21:22 Achieving DNA binding specificity
26:50 Working through a Thermal Cycling program the importance of the annealing step
32:16 The problem of primer dimers
34:30 The use of a GC clamp on the 3' end of a primer