PURE and EZ 'Nucleisolation'

Purifed nuclei

Transcription run-off experiments and nuclear component studies require nuclei that are functionally intact. The isolation of such nuclei has traditionally been achieved through detergent-based cell lysis followed by fractionation via differential centrifugation. Sigma-Aldrich of St. Louis now offers two products--the Nuclei EZ Prep and Nuclei PURE Prep nuclei isolation kits--for the isolation of functionally active nuclear components. According to senior R&D scientist Ned Watson, who developed the kits, the EZ Prep and PURE Prep methods are application-tested and offer investigators an easy-to-follow protocol for nuclei isolation.

The EZ Prep kit was developed for the isolation of nuclei from tissue culture cell lines. Unlike the standard protocol, which involves the harvesting of adherent cells by scraping in a phosphate-buffered saline followed by lysis, the EZ Prep method lyses and harvests cells at the same time. This modification produces higher yields than the traditional method and also eliminates the...