Mycoplasma are small bacteria that are one of the most prevalent microbial contaminants of mammalian cell cultures. Mycoplasma contamination can alter the growth and metabolic characteristics of cultured cells and lead to unreliable experimental results. Mycoplasma contamination often goes unnoticed as commonly no visible changes to medium (pH or turbidity) or cellular morphology occur.

The CycleavePCR Mycoplasma Detection Kit enables the specific detection of Mycoplasma species from cell-culture samples using real-time PCR amplification of the Mycoplasma 16S rRNA gene. Detection of at least ten species in the genus Mycoplasma, including species commonly found in cell-culture media (M. arginini, M. hominis, M. hyorhinis, M. orale, M. salivarium, M. fermentas, M. bovis, M. arthritidis, M. pirum, and M. pneumoniae) and one species in the genus Acholeplasma (A. laidlawii) has been confirmed.

This kit enables amplification products to be detected by cycling-probe technology, a highly sensitive detection method that uses an RNA/DNA chimeric probe and RNase H. One end of the probe is labeled with a fluorescent moiety and the other end with a quencher. When intact, this probe does not emit fluorescence due to the action of the quencher. However, when it forms a hybrid with the complementary sequence of an amplification product, RNase H cleaves RNA in the chimeric probe, resulting in strong fluorescent signal emission. The amount of amplified product can be monitored by measuring the intensity of emitted fluorescence.