probes and target oligonucleotides were purchased from the Takara Biotechnology Company. The oligonucleotides were purified via the C18 reversed-phase HPLC and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) and their sequences are shown in Table 1. The stem-loop probe oligonucleotide (oligo 1) has a 5'-HS label and a 3'-biotin, which will form the stem at appropriate ionic strength.