Reporter gene studies
| Reporter gene studies | |
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| <100 in vitro assays per day | >100 in vitro assays per day | in vivo assays |
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Luminometer with or without dispenser
| Luminometer without dispenser
| Luminometer with dispenser
| CCD Camera |
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Applications include:
Transcriptional and translational control
Secondary messengers
Receptor activity
Intracellular signal transduction | Gene therapy development
Environmental monitoring
Biosensors
Cytotoxicity | Virus propagation
Other cellular events coupled to gene expression |
Principles:
The firefly luciferase luc gene is the most commonly used reporter gene for studying cellular events coupled to gene expression. It has a number of distinct advantages such as: no background, easy analytical procedure, extreme sensitivity (10-20 mole luciferase can be detected) and reliability of results. The kits are conveniently delivered at room temperature, but should be kept at -18 degrees Celsius for prolonged storage (up to 2 years). The reagents contain special activators to counteract any inactivation of the luciferase enzyme during cell culture or sample storage. All three Luciferase Assay Kits contain the same reagents. The High Throughput Screening kits (484-102 and 484-103) come in larger vials for easier handling.
BioThema's D-luciferin, which is used for
in vivo assays, provides more light than any other D-luciferin on the market. This is due to its extreme purity. It is delivered in the acid form under argon and as such it is stable for several years in the freezer. It is easily dissolved in equimolar NaHCO
3. After D-luciferin is dissolved other buffers can be added to the required concentration. The stability of D-luciferin is greatest at pH6-7.