Patent ID: 8288097

Claim:
A method of producing an asymmetrically tagged nucleic acid fragment, said method comprising: i) ligating an adapter to each end of a double-stranded nucleic acid fragment, wherein said adapter comprises: (a) a first and a second nucleic acid strand associated with each other via one or more complementary domains, said adapter having a first end and a second end; (b) one or more region of substantial non-complementarity between said first and second nucleic acid strands; (c) a ligation site positioned on said first end of said adapter configured to allow ligation of said adapter to said double stranded nucleic acid fragment; and (d) a hairpin structure positioned on the 3â€² strand on said second end of said adaptor, said hairpin structure producing a nucleic acid synthesis self-priming site; and ii) performing a first round of nucleic acid synthesis initiated from said self-priming site using a nucleotide polymerase, thereby producing an asymmetrically tagged nucleic acid fragment.