Gel electrophoresis

Common card · No. 245047

Gel electrophoresis is a method for separation and analysis of biomacromolecules (DNA, RNA, proteins, etc.) and their fragments, based on their size and charge as they move through a gel under an electric field. It is used in clinical chemistry to separate proteins by charge or size and in biochemistry and molecular biology to separate a mixed population of DNA and RNA fragments by length, to estimate the size of DNA and RNA fragments, or to separate proteins by charge. Nucleic acid molecules are separated by applying an electric field to move the negatively charged molecules through a gel matrix of agarose, polyacrylamide, or other substances. Shorter molecules move faster and migrate farther than longer ones because shorter molecules flow more easily through the pores of the gel. This phenomenon is called sieving. Proteins are separated by the charge in agarose because the pores of the gel are too large to sieve proteins. Gel electrophoresis can also be used for the separation of nanoparticles...

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