Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplifies DNA following the equation.

The correct answer is 2ⁿ

Explanation:

• The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a widely used molecular biology technique for amplifying specific DNA sequences exponentially.
• It involves repeated cycles of denaturation, annealing, and extension to double the amount of DNA with each cycle.
• The amplification follows the equation 2ⁿ, where n is the number of cycles performed. Each cycle doubles the amount of DNA present, leading to exponential growth.

Key Points about PCR:

• Denaturation: This is the first step of PCR. The reaction mixture is heated to around 94-98°C for 20-30 seconds, causing the double-stranded DNA to melt and separate into two single strands.
• Primer Annealing: The temperature is lowered to 50-65°C for 20-40 seconds to allow the primers to bind (anneal) to their complementary sequences on the single-stranded DNA template.
• Extension: The temperature is raised to around 72°C, the optimal temperature for Taq polymerase. This enzyme synthesizes a new DNA strand by adding nucleotides to the primer in a sequence-specific manner.
• Each cycle doubles the amount of DNA, leading to exponential amplification according to the formula 2ⁿ.
• PCR is used in various applications, including genetic testing, forensic analysis, and detecting pathogens.