Final answer:
Transcription mediated amplification (TMA) is a molecular biology technique used to amplify RNA sequences, particularly useful in clinical diagnostics for identifying RNA-based viruses.
Step-by-step explanation:
TMA, or transcription mediated amplification, is a technique used for amplifying RNA sequences. It is a type of nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT) that is specifically designed to increase the number of RNA transcripts. TMA operates similarly to PCR, but rather than amplifying DNA, it amplifies RNA. In TMA, RNA is first converted into cDNA by reverse transcriptase. Then, the cDNA serves as a template for the amplification process. This methodology is utilized in clinical diagnostics to detect the presence of viruses or other pathogens that contain RNA as their genetic material.