Reasons for PCR failure....?

[Michal Svoboda]

Martha Reed wrote:

> ...And to top it all off, the oil that had been sitting in a
>tube on my bench (and causing no problem) for months *totally* inhibited
>the reaction.  Nobody in the lab believed the oil inhibition at first, but
>several trials convinced me to toss the tube.
>
>Martha Reed
>Genetics and Development
>Cornell University

I confirme, I had an identical problem with *PCR oil* ( Perkin Elmer ) : 
after some months this oil produced total inhibition of PCR.

						Michal Svoboda