NHGRI logo

Reading the Sequencing Products: Transcript

As each DNA fragment reaches the end of the gel, a laser excites its fluorescent dye. A camera detects the color of the emitted light and passes that information to a computer. One by one, the machine records the colors of the DNA fragments that pass through the gel.

A single sequencing reaction can reveal the order of several hundred DNA bases.


Last updated: March 29, 2012