Amplification efficiency and thermal stability of qPCR instrumentation: Current landscape and future perspectives

Quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) is a method of amplifying and detecting small samples of genetic material in real time and is in routine use across many laboratories. Speed and thermal uniformity, two important factors in a qPCR test, are in direct conflict with one another in conventional peltier-driven thermal cyclers. To overcome this, companies are developing novel thermal systems for qPCR testing. More recently, qPCR technology has developed to enable its use in point-of-care testing (POCT), where the test is administered and results are obtained in a single visit to a health provider, particularly in developing countries. For a system to be suitable for POCT it must be rapid and reliable. In the present study, the speed and thermal uniformity of four qPCR thermal cyclers currently available were compared, two of which use the conventional peltier/block heating method and two of which use novel heating and cooling methods. The time required to complete 40 cycles varied between 12 and 58 min, and the C_t values were comparable, ranging between 13.6 and 16.8. Therefore, the novel technologies investigated in the present study for qPCR instrumentation performed equally well compared with conventional qPCR instruments, in terms of amplification efficiency and thermal uniformity.