SYBR™ Safe DNA Gel Stain in 0.5X TBE

Many whitening agents used in clothing, as well as some fungi and bacteria, fluoresce at the same wavelengths as SYBR Safe DNA gel stain. These contaminants within or on the surface of the gel may produce this speckling.

The SYBR dyes are useful only over a narrow range of pH, from about 7 to 8. Outside this range, the fluorescent signal diminishes rapidly.

Similarly to ethidium bromide, SYBR Safe DNA Gel Stain runs in the opposite direction of the migrating DNA. This has no practical effect on the use of gels cast with SYBR Safe DNA Gel Stain, as only the very bottom of the gel will have a lower concentration of stain. This effect can be partially counteracted by staining the gel with SYBR Safe DNA Gel Stain after electrophoresis. Solutions of dye should not be added to the running buffer as this can cause breakdown of the dye at the electrodes and release toxic volatile compounds into the air.

SYBR Safe DNA Gel Stain is easily removed from nucleic acids by ethanol precipitation.

We strongly discourage the reuse of SYBR Safe DNA Gel Stain, as this practice significantly lowers sensitivity.