| abstract |
The invention provides a method of comparing a tester and a driver sample of nucleic, which tester sample is believed to contain a target nucleic acid not present in a driver sample, the method comprising: (a) providing tester and driver nucleic acid samples; (b) covalently attaching a first adaptor to said tester nucleic acid such as to form adaptor : tester nucleic acid complexes; (c) covalently attachning a second, different, adaptor to said driver nucleic acid such as to form adaptor: driver nucleic acid complexes; (d) combining said adaptor: tester nucleic acid complexes and said adaptor: driver nucleic acid complexes to form a combined sample; (e) subjecting said combined sample to denaturing and annealing conditions such that hybrid double-stranded adaptor: tester/adaptor: driver nucleic acid complexes are formed; (f) adding one ore more restriction enzymes capable of preferentially digesting hybrid non-target nucleic acid complexes, and incubating under restriction digestion conditions, (g) optionally repeating steps (e) and (f), (h) optionally amplifying one or more double-stranded nucleic acid complexes from step (g) using primers specific to the adaptors present in the or each complex. Also provided are related methods, and adaptors and kits for use in performing them. |