Nucleic acids, zone electrophoresis

Zone electrophoresis is mostly used for biological applications. Peptide separation and the measurement of protein fractions from blood serum (proteinogram of albumin and o-, (3- and 7-globulins) are among the better known applications. This TLC for biochemists is useful for the separation of polysaccharides, nucleic acids (for DNA sequencing), proteins and other colloidal species. 

Abrahams, J.P., Kraal, B. Bosch, L. (1988) Zone Interference Gel Electrophoresis A New Method for Studying Weak Protein-Nucleic Add Complexes under Native Conditions, Nucleic Acids Res. 16,10099-10108. 

The possibilities of more general application of electrophoresis to the separation of nucleic acids arose with the advent of gels of controlled pore size for zone electrophoresis. Although agar gels were... 

The possibility that some of the substances in the migrating zones might be lost by transference to the glass plates was ruled out when it was shown that, after zone electrophoresis of a nucleic acid hydrolyzate, the only ultraviolet-absorbing material transferred to the glass plates originated from the paper itself and not from the migrating nucleic acid components. Thus, the enclosed-strip technique may be used for quantitative work. 

Electrophoretic methods are used to separate substances based on their charge-to-mass ratios, using the effect of an electric field on the charges of these substances. These techniques are widely used for charged colloidal particles or macro-molecular ions such as those of proteins, nucleic acids, and polysaccharides. There are several types of electrophoresis, zone electrophoresis being one of the most conunon. 

Electrophoresis is a powerful tool in the separation and analysis of colloids, proteins, and nucleic acids. There are three major electrophoretic techniques as well as variations, each with its own name. Which one is applicable or most appropriate depends on the size and characteristics of the dissolved or suspended material and the type of information desired. The three principal techniques are microelectrophoresis, moving boundary electrophoresis, and zone electrophoresis (Shaw 1980). 

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