Sample Integrity: The Key to Success
Nucleic acids are the backbone of molecular biology research. As such, preservation of their integrity and purity is fundamental for genomic research. Low quality samples can lead to inconsistent results, inaccurate data, and incorrect concentration measurements.
DNA and RNA, however, are prone to degradation particularly when stored incorrectly. They are especially sensitive to depurination, deamination, depyrimidination, hydrolytic cleavage, nuclease contamination, and oxidation. Incorrect temperatures, contamination from nearby samples, and freeze-thawing can all have detrimental effects on nucleic acid samples.
While labs may sometimes encounter difficulties in correctly storing DNA and RNA due to cost limitations, lab space restrictions, or lack of appropriate pre- and post-extraction storage consumables knowledge, a host of solutions are available to accommodate any budget or laboratory space, as will be discussed.
Off to a Good Start: Handling Raw Materials
Downstream molecular results are only as good as the nucleic acids ...
