Determining relative microsatellite allele frequencies in pooled DNA samples.

Accurate quantification of relative allele frequencies in pooled DNA samples can be carried out for microsatellite markers having a dinucleotide repeat unit, conditional on the absence of overlapping "shadow" bands. This provides a basis for extending DNA pooling to this useful class of DNA marker. Expressions for the standard error of densitometric estimates of allele frequencies from pooled samples are presented, and their statistical application is illustrated in a variety of situations. This enables DNA pooling to be utilized in situations requiring the testing of statistical hypotheses concerning differences in allele frequencies between populations, or samples.