Chapter 3

Purification of DNA
Paul Towner
College of Health Science, University of Sharjah, PO Box 27272, UAE

1 Introduction
This chapter explains how to purify genomic DNA and the DNA of different types
of vectors. Genomic DNA can be obtained from any microorganism, plant or
animal at any time during development and provides DNA which contains a copy
of every gene from the organism. Vector DNA refers to plasmid and phage DNA.
The preparation of DNA from virtually every possible source has recently
become much simpler because of the introduction of methods using the chao-
tropic reagent guanidinium thiocyanate, which is able to dissolve tissues and
leave nucleic acids intact. After mixing this solution with a matrix such as diato-
maceous earth, or filtering through glass fibre micropore filters, the DNA binds
to the silica and can be recovered unsheared and in good yield. The basis of this
technique was described some time ago (1) and subsequently used in the puri-
fication of DNA from many sources, including the preparation of plasmids (2).
The DNA and RNA purification kits supplied by many commercial suppliers are
founded on the initial observations described in these publications. The DNA pre-
pared by this method can be used for PCR, Southern hybridization, construction of
gene libraries, transfections and sequencing. Consequently. the previous methods
used to prepare DNA have become obsolete and will not be described here.

2 Silica-based methods for the isolation of DNA

2.1 Description of the methodology
There are essentially four steps in the preparation of DNA using silica-based
methods:
(1) Preparation of the sample of material from which the DNA is to be isolated
(2) Dissolution of the sample in the guanidinium solubilization buffer
(3) Application of the solubilized sample to the silica-based adsorbent
(4) Removal of the guanidinium buffer from the silica and elution of the DNA
sample
The simplest materials to process are bacteria. yeast and tissue culture cells be-
cause they can easily be harvested by centrifugation and resuspended in water or

55
PAUL TOWNER

isotonic saline and then mixed with the guanidinium solubilization buffer to
form a transparent solution. Adherent tissue culture cells can be dissolved
directly by pipetting on the solubilization buffer after aspiration of media. The
DNA from viral particles such as A and adenovirus can also be obtained very
easily although the viral samples should be very pure and prepared by CsCI
density gradient centrifugation (see Chapter 2, Protocol 13) to avoid the possibility
of contamination with host DNA. Blood samples should be processed to remove
contaminating erythrocytes. This can be achieved by layering the blood or bone
marrow sample onto a 5.7% (w/v) Ficoll solution and centrifuging the sample at
4000 g for 45 min, which causes the erythrocytes to migrate to the bottom of the
tube leaving the leucocytes at the interface. These can be removed with a Pasteur
pipette, diluted with isotonic buffer and collected by centrifugation. Alterna-
tively, the blood sample can be diluted with an equal volume of erythrocyte lysis
buffer (155 mM N~Cl, 0.1 mM EDTA. 10 mM NaHC0 3 ) and left at room tempera-
ture for 30 min: the leucocytes can be recovered by centrifugation at 3300 g for
20 min. Samples from plants and animal tissues are difficult to obtain in a con-
dition where they will readily dissolve in the guanidinium solubilization buffer.
It is preferable to process them by freezing the sample in liquid nitrogen and
grinding to a powder using a pre-cooled pestle and mortar. The frozen powder
can then be sprinkled onto the solubilization buffer in a Petri dish or other con-
tainer offering a large surface area. By dispersing the powder coagulation is avoided
and the sample dissolves, giving good yields of DNA even with partly insoluble
material such as bone and fibrous plant components. The purification of plasmid
DNA from bacterial cultures is also very straightforward, inexpensive and gives a
product which can be used for sequencing and transfections.
Several companies market proprietary kits for the isolation and recovery of
genomic and plasmid DNA, the costs of these are becoming quite favourable
because of the increased demand for molecular biological techniques in many
laboratories. Most kits are based on the chaotropic properties of guanidinium
thiocyanate which denatures and dissolves all components other than nucleic
acid. Under these conditions, the DNA has a high affinity to bind to silica deriva-
tives either in the form of diatomaceous earth suspended in the guanidinium
solution or as glass-fibre filters. The concentration of the guanidinium thiocyanate
for the process to be effective is not absolutely crucial. The stock solubilization
buffer contains 4 M guanidinium but becomes diluted by the addition of re-
suspended samples to as low as 2.5 M; the yield and quality of the resulting DNA
are apparently unaffected within this concentration range. The processing of
the DNA-silica matrix can be performed using centrifuge tubes but requires
extensive pipetting to remove supernatants between centrifugation steps. This
makes the procedure time-consuming and is not as effective as the use of flow-
through columns, which can be attached to a vacuum line. Columns of this type
can be crudely prepared by piercing the base of a 0.6 ml microfuge tube with a
22G syringe needle. The columns are only effective when used with glass-fibre
filter paper because diatomaceous earth frequently leaks out even when the
hole is well packed with siliconized glass wool. It is preferable to use commer-

56
 PURIFICATION OF DNA

cial systems which comprise a microfuge tube and a filter unit which fits inside
it. These units are designed for centrifugation but the filter unit can be fitted
directly into a rubber or polyethylene vacuum line attached to a water-jet
pump. The filter units can be recycled if properly cleaned. Two types are avail-
able. The first contains a thin membrane, supported by a nylon mesh, fixed into
the base of the tllb~ . These units are available from VVhatman and are also
supplied in Hybaid kits. If used with diatomaceous earth their pores eventually
become blocked, which makes them very difficult to clean without damaging
the membrane. However, if a disc of a glass microfibre filter is placed on the
membrane before use they are less prone to damage. A morc robust filter unit is
supplied with Qj.agen kits and is mmposed of a tube into which can be slid a
large-pore sintered disc, which is held in place by a nylon G-ring. These tubes
can be cleaned by sonication to dislodge particles in the sinter, soaked in 10%
nitric acid to oxidize any traces of nUcleic acid, and then washed extensively
before reassembly.
Glass microfibre filters can be prepared cost-effectively from large diameter
sheets of Whatman GF/C or GF/D filters by punching out 7 mm diameter discs
using a sharp cork borer. These discs, which are as useful as diatomaceous earth,
can be placed between the sinter disc and nylon retaining ring. If diatomaceollS
earth is used the glass-fibre filter is not absolutely required but its presence will
prevent the sinters from becoming blocked by small particles of silica. large-
scale preparations of DNA are most commonly used in plasmid preparations and
require larger filter units which are also available from Whatman (VectaSpin
columns) and can be fitted with glass microfibre filters of 22 mm diameter pre-
pared using an appropriate cork borer.

2.2 Purification of genomic and viral DNA

Protowl 1 describes a typical methodology for solubilization of cell and tissue
samples. It can be used with animal and plant tissues and cell cultures, with
yeast, f1.mga} and bacterial cells, and also with preparations of viruses such as
phage 1\. In Protocol 2 DNA is purified from the solubilized material with diato-
maceous earth and in Protocol 3 purification is carried out with glass-fibre filters .
Whichever method is used, the resulting DNA should be high molecular weight
and suitable for any molecular biology application.

Protocol 1
Solubilization of cell and tissue samples

Reagents
• Guanidiniurn thiocyanate (Sigma G9277)

A. Preparation of the solubilization buffer

1 Dissolve 472g guanidinium thiocyanateG in about SOO ml of water.

57
PAUL TOWNER

Protocol 1 < (JrI\"lIl1 d

Z Add 50 ml 1 MTris-HCI. pH 7.5, and 40 ml 0.5 MEDTA. pH 8.0, and make up to 1 1.

3 Store in an airtight screw-topped light-proof container.

B. Solubilization 01 cen and tlaeue sampl..

I Prepare and harvest the sample to be processed and resuspend in a small volume of
buffer or media to prevent lysis. Generally, a 50 ~l pellet of bacteria, yeast, tissue
culture cells or leucocytes or 20 ~l viral samples (e.g. a phage A stock prepared as
described. in Chapter 2. Protocol 13) can be resuspended in a 250 j.LI solution. Animal
and plant tissues should be frozen and ground to a powder in liquid nitrogen using
a pre-cooled pestle and mortar.
2 Add 1 ml of solubilization buffer to each 25o-j.LI aliquot of resuspended material and
mix by inversion to fonn a transparent solution. If the sample is slightly viscous or
not entirely dissolved add further 200-j.Ll increments of solubilization buffer. Tissues
which have been powdered should be left: at room temperature for a few minutes
to allow the excess liquid nitrogen to evaporate and 100 mg samples sprinkled onto
1 ml of solubilization buffer.
AThe loose hygroscopic crystals of guanidinium thiocyanate occupy around 600 mI. They dis-
solve endothennically, so it is expedient to use hot water.

Protocol 2
Purification of DNA using DNA-blndlng resin
Equipment and ..a, _
• Diatomaceous earth (Sigma 05384) • Ethanol wash solution (50 mM Tris-HCI. pH
• Solubilization buffer (see Protocol1A) 7.5, 10mM EDTA, pH 8.0, 0,2 MNaQ, 50%
Ivfvl ethanol)
• Filter units (Whannan, Hybaid or Qiagen)

A. Preparation 01 the DNA-blndl", reeln

I Place 109 of diatomaceous earth in a 2-1 transparent vessel and stir in 21 of water to
resuspend the powder. Allow to settle for 1 h and pour away the supernatant con-
taining any material which remains in suspension.
2 Resuspend the diatomaceous earth in a funher 2 1of water and again allow to settle
for 1 h before pouring away the supernatant.
3 Prepare solubilization buffer as in ProtocolIA but restrict the volume to 900 ml and
use this to resuspend the diatomaceous earth before making up to 11.
4 Store in an airtight screw-topped light-proof container.

B. Purtftcatlon 01 DNA
I Resuspend the DNA-binding resin and pipette 0.5 mI into the solubilized samples
from Protocol 1.

58
 PURIFICATION OF DNA

Protocol 2 contillued

2 Mix very gently by inversion to avoid shearing and allow the DNA to bind to the
resin.
3 Transfer the tube contents to a filter unit attached to a vacuum line and allow the
liquid to drain from the filter.
4 Pipette 0.5 m1 solubilization buffer into the filter unit to rinse the binding resin.
5 Pipette 2 m1 ethanol wash solution into the tube, ensuring that all traces of liquid
previously in the tube are displaced.
6 Transfer the filter unit into a microfuge tube and centrifuge for 2 min at 15000 g to
remove all traces of liquid.
7 Transfer the filter unit to a fresh microfuge tube then carefully pipette 20-50 flol
water onto the bed of resin and allow to soak in.
8 Centrifuge for 2 min at 15000 g to collect the liquid containing the DNA
Notes
(a) The initial steps of Protocol 2A are designed! to remove very small particles of silica which
would otherwise block the holes in membranes and sintered discs. Consequently, the
concentration of resin is actually less than 10 g/l, but the concentration is not critical Stocks
of up to 20 gfI can be prepared.
(b) The amount of DNA-binding resin required depends on the amount of DNA in the sample.
One millilitre of a 10 gfI solution can bind in excess of 5 I-Lg DNA. If there is a vast excess of
nucleic acid the resin tends to clump very quickly and has a crystalline appearance; if this
happens, then add more resin until the clumps disappear.
(c) The filter unit must be centrifuged to remove all traces of salt and ethanol because in most
cases the DNA will be eluted in a very small volume of water. Have all reagents to hand so that
air is not allowed to be sucked through the resin bed between the different wash steps. If
traces of resin have leaked through the sinter during centrifugation then it is important to
transfer the DNA solution to a fresh tube. avoiding any traces of resin. If filter units are not
employed. all of the steps can be performed using a microfuge tube and the supernatants
discarded by aspiration after brief centrifugation (10-20 s). Each of the solvent exchange steps
should be duplicated to ensure that there is no carry-over of unwanted solutes.

Protocol 3
Purification of DNA using glass-fibre filters
Equipment and reagents
• Glass fibre filter discs. 7 rom diameter • Solubilization buffer (see ProtocollA)
(Whatman) • Ethanol wash solution (see Protocol 2)

Method
1 Prepare a filter column with five to ten 7-rom diameter glass-fibre filter discs. Attach
to a water-jet pump at a very low flow rate.

59
PAUL TOWNER

Protocol 3 continued

2 Pipette the solubilized sample (see Protocol 1) onto the filter column such that 1 ml
of the solution requires 1 min to flow through the column.
3 Pipette 0.5 ml solubilization buffer into the filter column to rinse the glass-fibre
filter discs.
4 Pipette 2 ml ethanol wash solution into the filter column to remove all traces of
solubilization buffer.
S Transfer the filter column to a microfuge tube and centrifuge at 15000 g for 2 min.
6 Place the filter column in a fresh microfuge tube and pipette 20-50 ILl water onto
the centre of the glass-fibre filter and allow it to soak in.
7 Centrifuge for 2 min at 15000 g to collect the liquid containing the DNA.
Notes
(a) Unlike the use of diatomaceous earth. the DNA only has the opportunity to bind to the
glass-fibre filter as it flows through the column. If the flow rate of the liquid is too high. sub-
stantial losses of DNA can result. After the initial binding step the water-jet flow rate can be
increased.
(b) In the absence of filter units, glass-fibre filters can be packed into the base of a O.6-ml
microfuge tube which has been pierced at its apex.

2.3 Plasmid DNA

2.3.1 Small-scale 'mini-preps'
It is quite straightforward to isolate plasmid DNA from bcherichia coli on a 'mini-
prep' scale starting from a few millilitres of culture and this can easily be scaled
up to process much larger volumes (100 ml to 2 I). The yield and quality of the
plasmid is very dependent on the conditions in which the bacterial culture is
grown. A well-aerated culture flask with either 5B or TB media, in preference to
LB broth (see Appendix 2). will result in sufficient bacterial growth that after
4-6 h the sample can be processed. This is especially important when preparing
very large p\asmids, of 35 kb or more. because these are prone to deletion of
non-esscntial sequences and readily form mini circle plasmids when growth
conditions are poor. It is also important not to overgrow the culture because it
then consists mostly of lysed bacteria and results in a poor-quality. low-yield
preparation.
The key to sllccessful isolation of plasmid DNA is the separation of the
plasmids from the bacterial genome so that the resulting preparation is
uncontaminated with bacterial DNA. The alkaline denaturation method (3)
described in Prot()coI4 works as follows:
II) The culture is harvested by centrifilgarion and resuspended in buffer
(2) The cells are mixed with lysis buffer containing NaOH and 50S; this raises
the pH to 12.0-12.5 and causes the non-supercoiled genomic DNA to de·
nature but has no effect on the supercoiled plasmid DNA

60
 PURIFICATION OF DNA

(3) The solution is mixed with a potassium acetate buffer to neutralize the alkali
and precipitate the detergent as potassium dodecyl sulphate, with which the
denatured genomic DNA coprecipitates
(4) The cleared supernatant containing the soluble plasmid DNA is recovered by
filtration or centrifugation
(5) The plasmid DNA sample is purified using a guanidinium-silica matrix

Protocol 4
Small-scale Isolation of plasmid DNA
Reagents
• SB or TB media (for recipes see Appendix 2) • Potassium acetate solution. prepared by
• GTE buffer (25 IIlM Tris-HCl. pH 7.5. 10 mM adding glacial acetic acid to 5 Mpotassium
EDTA. 50 mM glucose) acetate until pH4.8 is obtained
• Lysis buffer (0.2 MNaOH. 1% [w/v) SDS; • DNA-binding resin (see Protocol2A) or
prepared fresh from stocks of 5 MNaOH solubilization buffer (see ProtocollA)
and 10% Iw/v1SDS)

Method
1 Prepare a culture of E. coli containing the plasmid in 3 ml of SB or TB media with
sufficient aeration and the appropriate antibiotic. Colonies of bacteria on agar plates
from an overnight incubation at 37°C will have grown to a suitable density within
4-6 h if inoculated into pre-wanned media.
2 Transfer 1.5 ml of the culture to a microfuge tube and centrifuge at 15000 g for 20 s
to form a pellet.
3 Aspirate. discard the supernatant. and resuspend the cell pellet in 0.2 ml GTE buffer.
ensuring that a homogeneous suspension results. with no cell clumps.
4 Add 0.2 ml lysis buffer and invert the capped tube several times to mix the con-
tents. The solution should be translucent and viscous.
5 Add 0.2 ml potassium acetate solution and mix gently by inversion. The solution
will lose its viscosity and a coagulated white mass of potassium dodecyl sulphate
and bacterial genomic DNA will form.
6 Centrifuge at 15 OOOg for 5min to consolidate the precipitate which may either
produce a pellet. pellicle or both.
7 Transfer the supernatant, about 0.6 m1. to a microfuge tube. add 1 ml of DNA-bind-
ing resin and process as described in Protoco12B. or add 1 ml of solubilization buffer
and purify DNA using glass-fibre filters as described in Protocol 3.
Notes
(a) It is not necessary to restrict the processed culture volume to 1.5 ml: all of the sample up to
5 ml can be used.
(b) Occasionally. RNA might contaminate the plasmid preparation. To ensure its removal. 2 ",,1
of 10 mgJml RNase A (See Appendix 2) can be added to the GTE buffer. After lysis (step 4) the
solution is left at room temperature for 10 min to allow digestion of the RNA.

61
PAUL TOWNER

2.3.2 Large-scale preparation of plasmid DNA

Before proceeding with a large-scale culture of plasmid DNA it is worth poiming
out that the amount of plasmid resulting from a small-scale preparation is
usually enough for several restriction analyses and DNA-sequencing protocols. It
is also very straightforward to process 50 ml cultures by scaling up the volumes
used in Protocol 4 tenfold. However, if a large stock of a plasmid is required for
repetitive use then litre quantities of bacterial cultures will be required. The
main problem that this introduces is that a large volume of cleared bacterial
lysate is produced which requires substantial quantities of the guanidinium
buffer. This requirement can be decreased by first precipitating the nucleic acid
in the lysate with isopropanol and then digesting the RNA in the sample before
mixing with the guanidinium-silica adsorbent. Depending on the plasmid-
strain combination yields of plasmid in the range 4-10 mg/I of culture can
routinely be obtained.

Protocol 5
Large-scale plasmid preparation
Equipment and reaeents
• LB, YI' or DYI' broth (see Appendix 2) • Glass fibre filter discs, 7 mm diameter
• GTE buffer (see Protocol 4)
(Whatman)
• Lysis buffer (see Protocol 4) • VectaSpin column (Whatman)
• Potassium acetate solution (see Protocol 4) • Ethanol wash solution (see Protocol 2)
• DNA-binding resin (see ProtocollA) • 'IE buffer, pH 8.0 (10 IDM Tris.HCI, pH 8.0,
(optional) 1 IIlM EDTA, pH 8.0)
• Solubilization buffer (see ProtocollA)

Method
1 Prepare a 11 culture of E. coU harbouring the plasmid in a nutrient medium such as
LB, Yf or DYf. using sufficient aeration and an appropriate antibiotic. Conical flasks
of 2.5 1 capacity should contain at most 0.41 of media. The media should be pre-
wanned and inoculated using 10 ml of a fresh culture of bacteria and incubated for
not more than 8 h.
2 Transfer the culture to large volume centrifuge buckets and centrifuge at 4000 g for
20 min.
3 Remove and discard the culture supernatant and resuspend the cell pellet in
SO ml GTE buffer. ensuring that a homogeneous suspension results, with no cell
clumps.
4 Pour SO mllysis buffer into the cell suspension and gently swirl the mixture until a
homogeneous translucent viscous gel is formed.

62
 PURIFICATION OF DNA

ProtocolS continued

5 Pour in 50 ml of potassium acetate solution and mix gently by swirling or inversion

to produce a dear supernatant and coagulated white mass.
6 Centrifuge at 5000 g or higher for 30 min to consolidate the white precipitate. If the
supernatant remains slightly turbid it should be recentrifuged in 50 ml tubes to
precipitate any particulate material.
7 Carefully remove the partide-free. dear supernatant and mix thoroughly with
250 ml of DNA-binding resin or solubilization buffer. If resin is used in the prepara-
tion. very gently agitate the mixture so that the resin is in suspension for several
minutes.
8 If using resin. place one 22-mm diameter glass-fibre filter into a VectaSpin 20
column. If resin is not used then use 20 filters . Place a rubber collar around the
column and insert it into the mouth of a side-arm flask connected to a suitable
vacuum line.
9 If solubilization buffer is being used for the preparation. transfer the solution onto
the stack of glass-fibre filters and allow the liquid to be drawn into the flask. If resin
is being used. allow it to settle first so that a much smaller volume of suspension
needs to be transferred to the column. Remove the vacuum line and transfer the
filtrate to another vessel.
10 Re.a ttach the vacuum and wash the column. containing either the stack of glass-
fibre filters or resin. with 5 ml solubilization buffer followed by 20 ml of ethanol
wash solution.
11 Remove the column from the flask. place in a 50 ml Falcon tube and centrifuge at
5000g for 10 min to remove all trace of liquid from the column contents.
12 Place the column in a dean tube and carefully add 5 ml TE. pH 8.0. or water onto
the surface of the silica and allow it to soak through. Centrifuge at 5000 g for 10
min to retrieve the sample of DNA
Notes
(a) For removal of RNA, mix the cleared lysate resulting from step fi with an equ<l1 volume 0
isopropanol and leave on ice for 20 min to precipitate the nucleic acid. After centrifugation
(5000 g for 5 min). resuspend the precipitate in 10 ml 70% (vfv) ethanol. recentrifuge and partly
dry the nucleic acid pellet to remove traces ,of ethanol. Redissolve the pellet in 20 ml of TE
pH 8.0 containing 10 ILgJml RNase A (see Appendix 2) and incubate for 20 min. This solution can
then be mixed with 40 ml of DNA-binding resin or solubilization buffer and processed. The
removal of RNA from the sample allows a large reduction in the amount of silica required to
bind the DNA
(h) At step 9 it is wise to r~tain the filtrate because it can be recycled to ensure all the nucleic
acid absorbs to the glass-fibre filters. or mixed with additional resin to increase yield. If
VectaSpin columns are not available then ordinary chromatography columns with a suitable
sinter may be used with either a vacuum line or positive pressure to pump the liquids through
the matrix. The DNA will be contaminated with ethanol wash solution when it is eluted, so
will need to be precipitated using ethanol prior to use (see Protocol 8).

63
PAUL TOWNER

24 Post-purification treatment of samples with phenol

The lise of guanidinium and silica is generally sufficient for the preparation of
pure DNA from vely many sources of material, although occasionally DNA
samples are obtained which appear pure by several criteria but do not behave as
anticipated. It is then necessary to use aqueous phenol or phenol-chloroform as
an aid to removal of substances which have co-purified with the DNA sample.
Phenol is a very good solvent of proteins but can also dissolve small quantities of
DNA. For this reason, it is preferable to use phenol-chloroform on DNA samples
which are not heavily contaminated because DNA does not dissolve in this
organic mixture. Following the use of these solvents the DNA sample should be
washed with 24:1 (vfv) chloroform-isoamyl alcohol to remove traces of phenol
prior to precipitation of the DNA using ethanol. Protocol 6 explains how these
various solvent mixtures are prepared, Protocol 7 describes the phenol extraction
procedure. and Prot(Jwj 8 details ethanol precipitation.

Protocol 6
Preparation of phenol and chloroform solutions
Reagents
• Water-equilibrated phenol • Isoamyl alcohol (the more correct name is
• 1 MTris-HCl, pH 8.0 3-methyl-l-butanol)
• 50 mM Tris-HCI, pH 8.0 • TE buffer, pH 8.0 (see ProtocolS)
• Chloroform

A. Preparation of phenol
caution: Phenol is one of the most hazardous chemicals used in molecular biology (see
Chapter 1, Section 3_3) and should be obtained ready for use either as an aqueous solution
or buffered at pH 8.0. Aqueous phenol must be pretreated by buffering to pH 8.0

Method
1 Remove and discard the upper aqueous layer from a 1-1 bottle of water-equilibrated
phenol. Replace the aqueous layer with 1 M Tris-HCl, pH 8.0, and mix the liquid
phases by inverting the bottle several times.
2 Allow the layers to separate. If the lower layer is at pH 8.0 then remove and discard
the upper aqueous phase. Replace this with 50 mM Tris-HCI, pH 8.0. Agitate the
mixture and aliquot 1-10ml samples in microfuge or Falcon tubes and store at
- 20 °C. If the lower layer is not at pH 8.0 then repeat step 1 until this pH is reached.
3 Thaw aliquots at 20°C prior to use. It is the dense lower organic layer which is used
for treatment of DNA. The phenol remains stable at 4 °C for about 1 month. but
storage at room temperature or exposure to light enhances oxidation and the
liquid becomes pink. Such samples must be discarded because they can lead to
the modification and cleavage of DNA in solution. Oxidation can be inhibited by
the addition of 8-hydroxyquinoline at 0_1% (wfv). This has the advantage of giving a
bright yellow colour which identifies the organic layer during phenol extractions.

64
 PURIFICATION OF DNA

Protocol 6 continued

B. 24:1 (v/v) chloroform-lsoamyl alcohol

1 Mix 96 ml chloroform with 4 ml isoamyl alcohol and store in a capped bottle.

c. 'Phenol-chloroform'
1 Thaw a 10 m1 aliquot of phenol and transfer 5 m1 of the lower phase to a universal
bottle.
2 Mix in 5 m1 of 24:1 (vfv) chloroform- isoamyl alcohol and 10 m1 TE. pH 8.0. and store
at 4°C. Use the lower organic layer.

Protocol 7
Phenol extraction
Reagents
• Phenol-chloroform (see Protocol6C) • 24:1 (v/v) chloroform-isoamyl alcohol (see
Protocol 6B)

Method
1 Add 0.5 volume phenol-chloroform to 1.0 volume of aqueous DNA solution in a
microfuge tube and mix by inversion to form an emulsion.
2 Centrifuge the tube at 15000 g for 2 min to separate the sample into two phases.
Remove the upper aqueous phase to a dean tube immediately. being careful to avoid
the interface.
3 Add a half-volume of chloroform-isoamyl alcohol to the DNA sample. mix by
inversion. centrifuge at 15000 g for 2 min and remove the upper aqueous phase to
a clean tube.
Notes
(a) Oligonucleotides, plasmids and genomic DNA can all be treated with phenol.
(b) It is advisable with samples of genomic DNA to mix solutions carefully to avoid shearing.

Protocol 8
Precipitation of DNA with ethanol

Reagents
• 3 M potassium acetate solution pH 5.6, • Absolute ethanol
prepared by adding glacial acetic acid to • 70% (v/v) ethanol
3 M potassium acetate until this pH is
• TE buffer pH 8.0 (see Protocol 5)
obtained

6'5
PAUL TOWNER

Protocol 8 cOl1tmued

Method
1 Place a microfuge tube containing the DNA solution on ice and add a 0.1 volume of
3 Msodium acetate solution pH 5.6, and mix.
2 Add 2.5 volumes of cold absolute ethanol (- 20°C) and mix by inversion. Incubate at
- 20 °C for 30 min or -70°C for 10 min.
3 Centrifuge at 15 000 g for 30 min. Remove the supernatant and replace with 0.5 ml
70% (vfv) ethanol, mix by inversion and centrifuge at 15 000 g for 5 min.
4 Pour away the supernatant and dry the mouth of the inverted tube with tissue.
Place the tube in a horizontal position at room temperature and allow the traces of
ethanol to evaporate. Redissolve the DNA in water or TE, pH 8.0.
Notes
(a) Ethanol used for this procedure should be stored and used from the freezer. Ethanol at
room temperature will cause high-molecular-weight DNA to shear.
(h) If an oligonucleotide is being processed then it must be more than 12 nucleotides in length
and 3.0 volumes of ethanol must be used in step 2.
(c) If the amount of DNA exceeds 10 ""g then the precipitate may be visible after addition of
absolute ethanol. 10 this case the initial cennifugation in step 3 can be for 2 min.

3 Assessment of quality
The most straightforward procedure to assess the quantity and quality of plasmid
and genomic DNA is by electrophoresis in an agarose gel with known standards.
The guanidinium-silica purification method described here results in genomic
DNA larger than A (49 kb), as estimated in 0.3%(w/v) agarose gels (see Chapter 5),
and provides intact plasmids of up to 35 kb. The electrophoresed DNA should
appear as discrete bands with no discernib1e trail in the direction of migration,
which would indicate extensive shearing. For more precise quantification, a
sample of the DNA may be diluted and analysed by spectrophotometry (Protocol 9).

Protocol 9
Spectrophotometric determination of DNA
Equipment and reagents
• UV-visible scanning spectrophotometer • TE buffer, pH 7.S (10mM Tris-HCI, pH 7.5,
• Quartz cuvettes 1 DlM EDTA, pH 8.0)

Method
1 Transfer 10- 100 ....1 of the DNA to 900-990 ....1TE, pH 7.5, in a 1 ml quartz cuvette.
2 Mix the contents thoroughly and record a spectrum from 250-320 nm. A smooth

66
 PURIFICATION OF DNA

Protocol 9 cnrltrrlueci

peak should be observed with an absorption maximum at around 260 nm and no

noticeable shoulder at 280 nm (the latter indicates contamination with protein).
The 260-280nm absorbance ratio should not be more than 1.9. If the ratio is less
than 1.9, contamination with protein should be suspected.
3 Calculate the quantity of DNA using the guide that 1 ml of a solution with an A260 of
1.0 is equivalent to 50 J.Lg of double-stranded or 35 J.Lg of single-stranded DNA

Acknowledgement
1 am indebted to Dr Nicholas Lea for suggesting the use of glass fibre filter discs
and demonstrating the effectiveness of these protocols.

References
1. Boom, R.. Sol. c.}. A.. Salimans. M. M. M.. Jansen, C. 1., Wertheim-van Dillen, P. M. E.,
and van der Noordaa,J. (1990).]. Gin. Microbial. 28,495.
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