Anyone who has ever gotten irritated eyes or a mild burn from leaning over a UV transilluminator to cut out DNA bands from a gel does not have to be told that UV irradiation can be dangerous. Viewing fluorescently labeled DNA using even long-range UV irradiation can cause damage to the face and eyes of the researcher as well as the DNA samples. Now, Clare Chemical Research, a Colorado company started just 12 months ago, offers an alternative to UV transilluminators: the Dark Reader product line.
Dark Reader hand lamp and transilluminators use only visible light. Mark Seville, president of Clare Chemical Research, noted that "standard office lighting puts out more UV than any of the Dark Reader products." These products make use of two filters and a lamp that emits light with a wavelength greater than 400 nm. Between the lamp and the gel is a filter that removes ...
