Final answer:
DNA probes are designed to hybridize with a perfect match of the target DNA sequence, allowing the detection of mutations when hybridization does not occur due to mismatches.
Step-by-step explanation:
To detect mutations using DNA probes, one would expect hybridization to occur with a perfect match between the probe and the target DNA sequence. When the conditions are stringent, only perfectly complementary strands will hybridize effectively. This allows for the identification of specific nucleotide matches between the probe and the DNA sample, which can be indicative of mutations when the expected hybridization does not occur. For example, if a probe is designed to bind to a specific sequence where a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) may be present, the absence of hybridization might indicate a mutation at that site.