An electrochemical detection scheme for identification of single nucleotide polymorphisms using hairpin-forming probes

Single nucleotide polymorphisms are implicated as having a significant role in regulating growth, develop- ment and, thereby, human health and disease. We have developed a method for identifying single nucleotide genetic alterations by combining hairpin- forming DNA probes and electrochemical detection of sandwich DNA hybridization. Incorporation of hairpin- forming competitor probes and the catalyzed reporter deposition amplification system further improves assay specificity by 7-fold and sensitivity by 100-fold. We have demonstrated that the system successfully identified the factor V Leiden mutations from human blood specimens.