LAMP

LAMP is a DNA amplification technique designed for rapid and specific amplification of nucleic acids under isothermal conditions, eliminating the need for thermal cycling. Originally invented by Notomi et al., 2000, this method relies on the following key features:

Principle of Amplification:

  • LAMP uses 4-6 primers specifically designed to recognize 6-8 distinct regions of the target DNA, ensuring high specificity.
  • A strand-displacing DNA polymerase drives the amplification, enabling continuous synthesis without requiring denaturation by heat.

Mechanism:

  • The primers form loop structures in the amplified product, which serve as templates for subsequent rounds of amplification.
  • This process results in a cascade of amplification, producing large amounts of DNA in a short time.
  • New England Biolabs (NEB) has some really good material explaining how LAMP works. You can refer to their webpage material or YouTube video.

Products:

  • The amplified DNA forms a series of concatemers with a characteristic “dumbbell” or loop structure, which further amplify themselves.
  • The reaction generates a high concentration of DNA, which can be detected visually (e.g., turbidity, fluorescence) or through electrophoresis.

Advantages:

  • Speed: Amplification is typically complete within 30-60 minutes.
  • Isothermal: Requires only a constant temperature (usually 60–65°C), simplifying equipment needs.
  • High Specificity: Due to the use of multiple primers targeting distinct regions.
  • Robustness: LAMP tolerates inhibitors better than PCR, making it suitable for complex biological samples.

Initially demonstrated for gene-specific amplification, the original LAMP has since undergone many different modifications and has been widely adopted for diagnostics, particularly in infectious disease detection, point-of-care testing, and resource-limited settings.