M13 Bioprints: non-isotopic detection of individual-specific human DNA fingerprints with biotinylated M13 bacteriophage.

M13 bacteriophage was labelled by primer extension with biotin-11-dUTP and was successfully used as probe to study human hypervariable minisatellites (DNA fingerprints) in Southern blots. The method, which we called M13 Bioprints, presents two advantages over conventional DNA fingerprinting. First, it is easily accessible, since it utilizes the widely available M13 phage as a probe. Second, it makes use of biotin, which is safer, simpler and more economical than isotopic labels.