RNase H-dependent PCR (rhPCR): improved specificity and single nucleotide polymorphism detection using blocked cleavable primers.

Background: The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is commonly used to detect the presence of nucleic acid sequences both in research and diagnostic settings. While high specificity is often achieved, biological requirements sometimes necessitate that primers are placed in suboptimal locations which lead to problems with the formation of primer dimers and/or misamplification of homologous sequences.

Results: Pyrococcus abyssi (P.