Reliability of thermal transitions for characterizing DNA from micro-organisms.

Data from thermal transitions were evaluated for their usefulness in detecting similarities in the deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) of micro-organisms. Levels of reproducibility were determined for thermal transition analysis; methods of purification of DNA and the solvents, pH, and temperature intervals used during thermal transitions did not greatly affect the reproducibility of the values obtained. The shape of the thermal transition curve is a stable property of a given kind of DNA, and this property can be described quantitatively and with satisfactory precision.