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Part of the series: Biochemical Tools & Techniques Cells contain a vast library of information that codes for every intricacy of life. What if we as biochemists could edit a page or insert an entirely new chapter? This is the underlying principle of transfection . It is the fundamental method that allows us to move from passive readers to active editors. Figure 1. A biochemist adds a book to the library of genetic material. Transfection, transduction, transformation: a crucia

Part of the series: Biochemical Tools & Techniques Imagine you are a researcher and you have a problem. You need to attach a fluorescent probe to a specific protein inside a living cell. You have the tag and the protein, but how do you connect the two? Where do you start? The complexity of the cell is remarkable, and the task appears daunting. Additionally, how do you ensure that you are bonding the appropriate two constituents together with sufficient efficiency and specific

Part of the series: Biochemical Tools & Techniques Imagine you are a conductor of a symphony orchestra. You suspect that a specific section, the violins, is crucial in the harmony of the performance. To test this, you don't just listen harder for the violins; you ask them to leave the stage. The technique of immunodepletion is like asking the entire violin section to step out. Immunodepletion is a technique that uses antibodies to remove a specific target protein from a mixtu

Part of the series: Biochemical Tools & Techniques Biochemists often need to quantify protein concentrations in solutions. However, because of the diverse nature and composition of proteins, a single technique may not be the most accurate or efficient in all cases. Marion M. Bradford, in 1976, developed what is now known as the Bradford Assay . It is quick and accurate in determining the concentration of proteins in a solution. In an acidic solution, Coomassie Brilliant Blue

Part of the series: Biochemical Tools You are a biochemist holding a sample containing a tangle of DNA fragments. For your experiment, you need just one specific piece. This leaves you with two essential challenges: How do you isolate your target fragment from the rest? How can you confirm that you have isolated the correct one? The solution, one of the most valuable tools in modern biology, is a technique known as gel electrophoresis . This is the story of how we harness ele