Dithiothreitol Applications

Dithiothreitol is used as a abbreviation or "deprotecting" abettor for thiolated DNA. The terminal sulfur atoms of thiolated DNA acquire a addiction to analysis dimers in solution, abnormally in the appearance of oxygen. Dimerization abundantly lowers the adeptness of after coupling reactions such as DNA aloofness on gold in biosensors. Typically Dithiothreitol is adulterated with a DNA band-aid and acclimatized to react, and afresh is removed by filtration (for the solid catalyst) or by chromatography (for the aqueous form). The Dithiothreitol abatement activity is about declared "desalting." Generally, Dithiothreitol is used as a absorption abettor that prevents bonfire of thiol groups.

Dithiothreitol is frequently used to allay the disulfide bonds of proteins and, added generally, to ahead intramolecular and intermolecular disulfide bonds from basal amidst cysteine residues of proteins. However, even DTT cannot allay active (solvent-inaccessible) disulfide bonds, so abbreviation of disulfide bonds is sometimes agitated out below denaturing conditions. Dithiothreitol is oftentimes used alternating with sodium dodecylsulfate in SDS-PAGE to added compound proteins by abbreviation their disulfide bonds to accede for bigger breach of proteins during electrophoresis. Conversely, the bread-and-butter acceptance of adapted disulfide bonds can be assayed by their bulk of abbreviation in the appearance of Dithiothreitol.

Dithiothreitol can aswell be used as an acid agent. Its accomplished advantage is that bigger no mixed-disulfide brand are populated, in adverse to added agents such as glutathione. In absolute abate cases, a Dithiothreitol adduct may be formed, i.e., the two sulfur atoms of Dithiothreitol may analysis disulfide bonds to adapted sulfur atoms; in such cases, DTT cannot cyclize aback it has no such absolute chargeless thiols.