What are the applications of southern blotting?

There are several applications of southern blotting. One application is identifying a single gene within a mixture of DNA fragments. Southern blots are helpful for identifying fragments larger than those typically amplified by PCR. Southern blot is also used to identify the presence of gene families within a genome. Another application is that it can be used to detect malignancies and genetic disorders such as sickle cell mutations and monoclonal leukemia. Southern blotting can also be used for forensic tests such as sex identification and paternity testing. It is also used to research mutations, deletions, and duplications in genes which cause diseases. This method is also used for gene mapping by mapping restriction sites in and near sections of genomic DNA using specific probes. Lastly, southern blotting is used for identifying specific DNA sequences within genomes.