Single nucleotide detection method

Abstract

A method of analysing a single nucleoside triphosphate comprising: (1) producing at least one substantially double-stranded oligonucleotide used probe by reacting in the presence of a polymerase and a ligase the single nucleoside triphosphate with a corresponding probe system comprising (a) a first single-stranded oligonucleotide labelled with detectable elements in an undetectable state and (b) second and third single-stranded oligonucleotides capable of hybridising to complementary regions on the first oligonucleotide; (2) digesting the used probe with an enzyme having double-stranded exonucleolytic activity to yield the detectable elements in a detectable state and a single-stranded fourth oligonucleotide which is at least in part the sequence complement of the first oligonucleotide; (3) reacting the fourth oligonucleotide with another first oligonucleotide to produce a substantially double-stranded oligonucleotide product corresponding to the used probe; (4) repeating steps (2) and (3) in a cycle and (5) detecting the detectable elements released in each iteration.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.