MLPA
(Multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification)
MLPA was introduced by MRC-Holland in January 2002 as a new, very sensitive, technique for relative quantification of up to 40 different nucleic acid sequences in a single, extremely easy to perform, reaction. During a test period in the second half of 2001, MLPA was successfully used by scientists at the Dutch cancer institute and the two universities of Amsterdam for the detection of exon deletions in the human BRCA1, MSH2 and MLH1 genes in DNA samples from more than 1000 patients suspected of hereditary breast or colon cancer. Among several other applications, MLPA has been used successfully to test for amplification of the human ERBB2 (HER2neu) gene in more than 100 breast cancer derived DNA samples and for the relative quantification of 35 different mRNAs in 160 blood derived total RNA preparations.
The MLPA technique was first described by: Schouten J.P., McElgunn, C.J., Waaijer, R., Zwijnenburg, D., Diepvens, F and Pals, G. (2002) Nucleic Acid Research 30, e57.
For more information: http://www.mlpa.com