Quantitation and Quality Assessment of DNA

The structure of DNA consists of two polynucleotide chains that run in opposite direction to one another and are held together by hydrogen bonds between the bases. The stacking of bases one upon another gives rise to grooves which run along the helix and thus makes up the double helical structure of DNA. These unique structural traits and complimentary nature of this biomolecule along with the pairing of bases has allowed researchers to create a wide range of sophisticated techniques for determining the quantity and quality of DNA present in a given sample (Nicklas and Buel, Anal Bioanal Chem 376:1160–1167, 2003a). Major objectives that have driven the development of DNA quantitative approaches throughout history have been raising the informational value of the result as well as increasing the analytical accuracy. Though it is very unique to the field of forensic science where due to the scarcity of sample along with its degraded nature, it becomes of paramount importance that the quantitation and quality assessment techniques used minimize the amount of sample requirement. Thus, DNA quantification approaches have transformed substantially during the last many years, as investigators are constantly refining the pre-existing methods and integrating new technologies.