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Protein electrophoresis
Electrophoresis is a method to separate different
kinds of
molecules (including DNA). Gel electrophoresis separates the
different molecules in a mixture by letting them pass through a
gel, driven by an electric
current. The gel is placed in a tank with an ionic
buffer, and the mixture to separate is injected onto the gel near
the
anode. When the electric current is applied, the (negatively
charged) molecules travel towards the (positive)
cathode. The smaller and the more negatively charged the molecules
are, the faster they pass through the gel.
After the electrophoresis run, when the smallest molecules have
almost reached the anode, the molecules in the gel can be
stained to make them visible.
In
chemistry and
medicine, protein electrophoresis is a method of
analysing a mixture of
proteins by means of
gel electrophoresis, mainly in
blood
serum (blood
plasma is not suitable).
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There are two large classes of
blood
proteins:
albumin and
globulin. They are generally equal in proportion, but albumin is
much smaller and lightly negatively charged, leading to an
accumulation of albumin on the electrophoretic gel. A small band
before
albumin represents
transthyretin (also named
pre-albumin). Some forms of medication or body chemicals can cause
their own band, usually small (see, however,
paraprotein).
The
globulins are classified by their banding pattern (with their main
representatives):
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