Techniques in Molecular Biology –SPRING 2018

LAB EXPERIMENT 3:Gel electrophoresis

Background & Theory

Gel electrophoresis is the standard lab procedure for separating DNA by size (e.g. length in base pairs) for visualization and purification. Electrophoresis uses an electrical field to move the negatively charged DNA toward a positive electrode through an agarose gel matrix. The gel matrix allows shorter DNA fragments to migrate more quickly than larger ones. Thus, you can accurately determine the length of a DNA segment by running it on an agarose gel alongside a DNA ladder (a collection of DNA fragments of known lengths).

Protocol

Reagents:

  • 1 x TEAbuffer-prepared as stock
  • Agarose - bought as powder
  • Ethidium bromide (EtBr) - prepared as stock
  • 1kb ladder – bought as finished solution
  • Loading dye (6x)- loading buffer – prepared as stock
  • 1 x TEA buffer

TAE buffer is commonly prepared as a 50X stock solution for laboratory use. A 50X stock solution can be prepared by dissolving 242g Tris base in water, adding 57.1mL glacial acetic acid, and 100mL of 500mM EDTA (pH 8.0) solution, and bringing the final volume up to 1 liter. This stock solution can be diluted 50:1 with water to make a 1X working solution. This 1X solution will contain 40mM Tris, 20mM acetic acid, and 1mM EDTA (we take 20ml 50x TEA to make 1Litar 1x TAE)

  • Ethidium bromide

Add ethidium bromide (EtBr) to a final concentration of approximately 0.2-0.5μg/mL (usually about 3-5μl of lab stock solution per 100mL gel). EtBr binds to the DNA and allows you to visualize the DNA under ultraviolet (UV) light. IT IS VERY TOXIC, AVOID INHALING AND WEAR APPROPRIATE GLOVES !!

  • 1 Kb Plus DNA Ladder

The 1 kb Plus DNA Ladder is a powerful tool for estimating the molecular weight of linear, double-stranded DNA fragments. The 1 kb Plus DNA ladder is composed of 20 highly purified, double-stranded DNA bands spanning 100 bp to 12,000 bp. This ladder has 12 evenly spaced bands ranging from 1 kb to 12 kb, a quick orientation band at 1,650 bp that forms a distinct doublet with the 2 kb band, and seven bands of round sizes below 1 kb.

  • Loading dye (6x)

Composed of :

  • 10mM Tris-HCl (pH7.6)
  • 0.03%bromophenol blue
  • 0.03%xylene cyanol FF
  • 60%glycerol
  • 60mM EDTA

Loading buffer serves two purposes: 1) it provides a visible dye that helps with gel loading and will also allows you to gauge how far the gel has run while you are running your gel; and 2) it contains a high % glycerol, so after adding it your sample is heavier than water and will settle to the bottom of the gel well, instead of diffusing in the buffer.

Equipment:

  1. Casting tray –from BioRad (horizontal electrophoresis system- subcell)
  2. Pipettes and tips (1 - 50µl)
  3. 0.5 ml disposable microcentrifuge tubes

Protocol

Pouring a Standard 1% Agarose Gel:

  1. Measure out 1g of agarose.

Note: Agarose gels are commonly used in concentrations of 0.7% to 2% depending on the size of bands needed to be separated Simply adjust the amount of starting agarose to 1% 1g/100mL TAE (i.e. 2g/100mL will give you 2%).

  1. Pour agarose powder into microwavable flask along with 100mL of 1xTAE.

  1. Microwave for 1-3min (until the agarose is completely dissolved and there is a nice rolling boil).

Note: Caution HOT! Be careful stirring, eruptive boiling can occur.

  1. Let agarose solution cool down for 5min.
  1. It is optional but I usually add ethidium bromide (EtBr) to a final concentration of approximately 200-500ng/mL (usually about 2-5μl of lab stock solution, 500mg/ml, per 100mL gel). EtBr binds to the DNA and allows you to visualize the DNA under ultraviolet (UV) light.

Note: Caution EtBr is a known mutagen. Wear a lab coat, eye protection and gloves when working with this chemical.

  1. Pour the agarose into a gel tray with the well comb in place.

Note: Pour slowly to avoid bubbles which will disrupt the gel. Any bubbles can be pushed away from the well comb or towards the sides/edges of the gel with a pipette tip.

  1. Place newly poured gel at 4°C for 10-15 minutes OR let sit at room temperature for 20-30 minutes, until it has completely solidified.

Note: If you are in a hurry the gel can also be set more quickly if you place the gel tray at 4°C earlier so that it is already cold when the gel is poured into it

Loading Samples and Running an Agarose Gel:

  1. Add loading buffer to each of your digest samples.

Note: Loading buffer serves two purposes: 1) it provides a visible dye that helps with gel loading and will also allows you to gauge how far the gel has run while you are running your gel; and 2) it contains a high % glycerol, so after adding it your sample is heavier than water and will settle to the bottom of the gel well, instead of diffusing in the buffer.

  1. Once solidified, place the agarose gel into the gel box (electrophoresis unit).
  1. Fill gel box with 1xTAE (or TBE) until the gel is covered.

Note: Remember, if you added EtBr to your gel, add some to the buffer as well. EtBr is positively charged and will run the opposite direction from the DNA. So if you run the gel without EtBr in the buffer you will reach a point where the DNA will be in the bottom portion of the gel, but all of the EtBr will be in the top portion and your bands will be differentially intense. If this happens, you can just soak the gel in EtBr solution and rinse with water to even out the staining after the gel has been run, just as you would if you had not added EtBr to the gel in the first place.

  1. Carefully load a molecular weight ladder into the first lane of the gel.

Note: When loading the sample in the well, maintain positive pressure on the sample to prevent bubbles or buffer from entering the tip. Place the very top of the tip of the pipette into the buffer just above the well. Very slowly and steadily, push the sample out and watch as the sample fills the well. After all of the sample is unloaded, push the pipettor to the second stop and carefully raising the pipette straight out of the buffer.

  1. Carefully load your samples into the additional wells of the gel.
  2. Run the gel at 60-90V until the dye line is approximately 75-80% of the way down the gel.

Note: Black is negative, red is positive. (The DNA is negatively charged and will run towards the positive electrode.) Always Run to Red.

Note: A typical run time is about 30-40 min at 90V, depending on the gel concentration and voltage

  1. Turn OFF power, disconnect the electrodes from the power source, and then carefully remove the gel from the gel box.

Note: When using UV light, protect your skin by wearing safety goggles or a face shield, gloves and a lab coat.

Note: The fragments of DNA are usually referred to as ‘bands’ due to their appearance on the gel.

Analyzing Your Gel:

Using the DNA ladder in the first lane as a guide (the manufacturer's instruction will tell you the size of each band), you can interpret the bands that you get in your sample lanes to determine if the resulting DNA bands that you see are as expected or not, on UV /VIS imager.

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Prepared by Jasmin Sutkovic SPRING 2018