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AAT Bioquest

What is the function of BSA in PCR?

Posted February 11, 2021


Answer

BSA (bovine serum albumin) is a common addition in several molecular biology applications, most notably restriction enzyme digestions and PCR. BSA significantly enhances PCR amplification yield when used in combination with organic solvents, DMSO or formamide. BSA is particularly useful when there are PCR inhibitors, such as melanin, in the extraction.

Additional resources

Relief of Amplification Inhibition in PCR with Bovine Serum Albumin or T4 Gene 32 Protein

ReadiLink™ BSA Conjugation Kit

Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)