Gene expression technologies are central to a wide range of biological research projects, from medical research, such as looking at effects of drug candidates at the molecular level or understanding the cellular changes during cancer development, through to ecological work, such as measuring the changes in complex microbial communities under different environmental stresses.
 

Real-time PCR —also known as quantitative reverse transcription PCR (RT-qPCR), and quantitative PCR (qPCR)—is one of the most powerful and sensitive gene analysis techniques available. It is used for a broad range of applications including quantitative gene expression analysis, genotyping, copy number, drug target validation, biomarker discovery, pathogen detection, and measuring RNA interference.