Gel Elctrophoresis Flashcards
What is the process of this experiment?
When DNA is digested by a restriction enzyme fragments of different lengths are produced. The digested DNA sample is placed into a well in a porous polysaccharide gel immersed in a buffer solution. An electrical current runs between two electrodes placed in the buffer. DNA is negatively charged, so moves towards the positive electrode. As the charge is uniformly distributed along the sugar-phosphate backbone of the molecule, the DNA fragments are separated along their lane according to their size, with shorter fragments moving faster and therefore further through the gel. One well in the gel would usually contain a DNA ladder- this lane then displays a selection of known lengths of DNA that can be used as a reference.
What is gel electrophoresis?
A technique known as electrophoresis can be used to separate large molecules (including nucleic acids or proteins) on the basis of size and charge.
