This brief animation demonstrates the cyclic reversible termination (CRT) process used by Lightning Terminators™ to sequence DNA. The natural process of synthesizing DNA is harnessed, but the natural nucleotides are replaced with modified terminators that stop the process after each single base incorporation. The incorporated base is then detected by fluorescence imaging, enabling reading of the base. The termination process is then reversed by exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light, removing both the terminating and fluorescent dye groups. The CRT cycle is repeated many times as needed until the DNA sequence is determined.
Papers:
Lewis EK, Haaland WC, Nguyen F, Heller DA, Allen MJ, Macgregor RR, Berger CS, Willingham B, Burns LA, Scott GB, Kittrell C, Johnson BR, Curl RF, and Metzker ML. (2005) Color-blind fluorescence detection for four-color DNA sequencing.Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 102:5346-5351.
