nucleic acid purification
A glossary of purification terms
Define chaotrope, bind-wash-elute, yield, purity ratios and RIN, then walk a purification so those words describe one real workflow.
8 October 2026 · 9 min read
Topic cluster
Nucleic acid purification
DNA and RNA extraction principles, sample handling, purity checks and the limits of a clean spectrophotometric ratio.
All topicsBuffers and laboratory water26Cell culture26Chromatography26Cold chain and sample storage26Cytometry and microscopy26DNA sequencing26Gels and blotting26Gene expression26Genome editing26Immunoassays26Laboratory labware26Laboratory safety26Liquid handling26Microbiology26Molecular cloning26Nucleic acid purification26PCR and amplification26Protein biochemistry26Proteomics26Research sourcing and study design26
specificationenquiryglossarytroubleshootingcontaminationcontrolsquantificationpurificationbenchesaliquotsblanksabsorbancecarryoverextractionno rt controlstoragetissuedilution
26 articles
nucleic acid purification
Blood saliva and tissue as starting material
Explain how EDTA blood, heparin blood, saliva and solid tissue behave as extraction inputs, and why a serum tube is not whole blood.
8 October 2026 · 9 min read
nucleic acid purification
Choosing a sample input for extraction
Set an extraction input from the assay you will run and the kit capacity class, so too little sample is not missed and too much does not overload.
8 October 2026 · 10 min read
nucleic acid purification
Column binding capacity and overload
More lysate can lower recovery once a column is past capacity. Read slow flow, dirty ratios and a pellet that will not clear, then split the load.
8 October 2026 · 7 min read
nucleic acid purification
DNA cleanup before a sensitive assay
Compare PCR cleanup, gel extraction, alcohol precipitation and bead cleanup by which leftovers each removes and which losses each accepts.
8 October 2026 · 10 min read
nucleic acid purification
DNase treatment and its limits
Decide when DNase should remove genomic DNA from an RNA prep, and where the enzyme can nick RNA or remain active into reverse transcription.
8 October 2026 · 9 min read
nucleic acid purification
Ethanol carryover and failed downstream assays
Define wash buffer, residual alcohol, overdrying and elution, then see why leftover ethanol stops a ligation, a PCR or a restriction digest.
8 October 2026 · 7 min read
nucleic acid purification
Extraction controls and blank samples
A reagent blank and a known positive decide whether an extraction batch is interpretable. A contaminated blank stops the whole set.
8 October 2026 · 7 min read
nucleic acid purification
FFPE samples and fragmented nucleic acid
Troubleshoot short nucleic acid from FFPE tissue: formalin crosslinks, fragmentation, and why a failed long amplicon does not mean the block was empty.
8 October 2026 · 9 min read
nucleic acid purification
Fluorometric versus absorbance quantification
Choose a dye assay when double-stranded DNA must be counted, and absorbance when you need a fast check of everything that absorbs at 260 nm.
8 October 2026 · 8 min read
Pillar · nucleic acid purification
How DNA extraction methods differ
How silica columns, beads, precipitation and organic extraction change DNA yield, length and inhibitors, and which class fits the assay you actually plan to run.
8 October 2026 · 8 min read
nucleic acid purification
Labeling tubes so an extraction stays traceable
A perfect ratio on an unlabeled tube cannot be used. Record identity, date, method, elution buffer and operator so the extraction stays traceable.
8 October 2026 · 8 min read