Question

why is it that the gel in electrophoresis has to be hydrophilic, with a wide range of ph and temperature? seem not to find the information from google...

Answer 1

I'm guessing these answers here, but ...

It has to be hydrophilic because you have a gel, it's mostly liquid anyhow, so if you're moving things around, and most things I'd imagine you'd run through a gel would be hydrophilic, you'd want your stuff to be attracted to the gel so that it will migrate through it.

You need different pHs because you don't want your molecules becoming deprotonated or protonated as a consequence of being put into a gel without a similar pH; you run gels mostly to learn about molecular weight and size, and if it gain/loses hydrogens then you're not really looking at your accurate product.

Same with temperature - too high of a temperature can break apart your product and then you're not running an accurate gel.

Answer 2

For guessing, spatcher, it's very good.

Before proteins are run on a gel, they are treated with sodium dodecyl sulfate (known to all the world as SDS). The SDS denatures the proteins and breaks any disulfides so all the proteins are completely denatured - they will migrate through the gel according to their size only, not their shapes. The SDS molecules also coat the peptide - that is, they cover up any charges or polar groups and effectively make sure all proteins interact with the gel in the same way.

Coating the proteins with SDS requires that the gel itself be hydrophillic. SDS is hydrophobic and if the gels were also hydrophobic, then the SDS would effectively bond the proteins to the gel instead of letting them running through it.

Answer 3

@blues
Protein electrophoresis can be run without SDS (Native-PAGE)

Answer 4

In electrophoresis use a gel only purpose is to provide dense porous medum for travel of protein or DNA so they need driving force formovement and hence less diffusion


If gel is hydrophobic then environment around protein or DNA will be same as in insde cell.
so it will not interfere by other forces such as hydrophobic forces

Answer 5

thanks guys...