Can polymerase chain reactions copie DNA without needing a living cell?

[eliza]

I understand that PCR copies DNA and is useful for crime investigations, but I can find the answer to my question about whether the cells must be living or not anywhere.

Thanks you for your help.

[epond]

Yes, can.. DNA is not living thing it composed of nucleotides (as monomer),
nucleotides composed of 5-carbon sugar, nitrogen bas and phosphate group. They are chemical, as long there is no contamination to these chemical, PCR can be done. Cell will die but chemical will never die..(except the half life of carbon;this is the reason why we can't not make the genome of dinosaur)

[Lin]

This is a good question.

A cellular environment is not required as long as the specific enzymes DNA polymerases I & III, and primase are present, and the pH and temperatures are optimal. These enzymes will carry out the necessary synthesis of the primer , then add nucleotides to the primer and replace the primer with a DNA sequence.

However, the problem is that without a cellular environment , these enzymes will not exist . So unless you can somehow extract these enzymes, and replicate the exact conditions, such as optimum pH and temperatures in a cell, DNA replication cannot take place.

Don't forget you will need ribosomes, tRNA and other cellular metabolic machinery to continuously synthesize the required enzymes and these can only be found in a cell (unless you extract them as well).

That is why viruses are inactive and incapable of replicating their genomes when they are out of a cell as they require the necessary enzymes that are present only in a cell for replication for replication of their genomes (DNA or RNA).

[m37786]

Yes, there is no problem , its important the initial cobies of the DNA
mahmoud manama