Environmental DNA assays require rigorous design, testing, optimization and validation before the collection of field data can begin. Here, we present a protocol to take users through each step of designing a species-specific, probe-based qPCR assay for the detection and quantification of a target species DNA from environmental samples.
Klymus, K. E., Ruiz Ramos, D. V., Thompson, N. L., Richter, C. A. Development and Testing of Species-specific Quantitative PCR Assays for Environmental DNA Applications. J. Vis. Exp. (165), e61825, doi:10.3791/61825 (2020).