When I first started researching Lyme, I thought I understood what the PCR. However, now that I may be getting one, I am not sure. Can anybody tell me, please? Thanks
Posted by shazdancer (Member # 1436) on :
I am not a chemist, but I'll give it my best shot. Meanwhile, try this site for a pretty good layman's explanation:
The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a method of multiplying a section of DNA, by chemically attaching it to a polymer (a long, uncomplicated molecule), and then having that molecule replicate itself many times over fairly quickly, retaining the attached DNA, which can then be tested.
The problems with testing for the Lyme bacteria are getting bacteria in the blood or tissue sample in the first place, and keeping them alive long enough outside the body for them to replicate into a big enough colony to test. Lyme spirochetes take a long time to reproduce. Polymers are faster.
Where the Western Blot tests for antibodies (our body's reaction to the spirochete), the PCR actually detects the for the DNA of the bacterium itself.