Tandem Repeats

Tandem repeats are a type of genetic pattern in which a stretch of DNA is repeated consecutively multiple times. Tandem repeats can occur within a gene or across a region of a genome, and have been found across the spectrum of all living organisms. They have a range of implications in evolution, genetics and genomic structure as they are easily replicated and are vulnerable to mutation and insertion. In DNA-based forensics they can be used to differentiate between individuals. Additionally, they can be used to infer the history of evolution, or to study gene or genome mutations in organisms.