Glo-Plate™ Blue LED Illuminator

PMA is stable after dilution to 0.2 mM in water as long as it is protected from light and can be stored in the same way as the 20 mM stock solution.

Note: Do not remove the cover or introduce liquids to the interior of the PMA-Lite.

1. Thoroughly wipe all exposed PMA-Lite surfaces and the inner rims of the tube holes with 10% bleach in water (household bleach diluted at a ratio of 1 part bleach to 9 parts water).
2. Let the bleach sit on the unit for 10 minutes.
3. Thoroughly wipe the surfaces with dH2O.
4. Wipe the surfaces with 70% ethanol and allow to air dry.

Viability PCR originally used EMA (ethidium monoazide) to inactivate dead cell DNA. Biotium developed PMA (propidium monoazide) in collaboration with investigators at Montana State University (Nocker et al. 2006). PMA is more selective for dead cells than EMA, and became widely used for selective detection of viable microbes and viruses. PMAxx™ is Biotium’s newest viability PCR dye, designed to be more effective than PMA at eliminating PCR amplification of dead cell DNA. Therefore it provides the best discrimination between live and dead bacteria.

Learn more about PMA and PMAxx™ for viability PCR.

We have tested a variety of different light sources for the development of DNAzure® bands in an agarose gel. We have found that most light sources will work, but how long the development takes is dependent on the brightness of the light. The fastest band development is seen with our Gel-Bright™ and Glo-Plate™ Blue LED illuminators. We have also seen good results with other bright, white LED lights. Other light sources that work but take more time include an LED desk lamp and a cell phone light. We found that a 600W halogen lamp did not work well- it was too hot, which melted the gel.

For optimal staining, we recommend diluting the 100X DNAzure® stock to 1X working solution fresh each time. However, if a 1X solution stored at 4°C and protected from light, the gel stain should to be good up to two weeks.

Yes, the 1X DNAzure® staining solution can be re-used for multiple gels, under certain conditions. Importantly, the staining solution must be removed from the gel before the gel is exposed to light to develop the bands. If the staining solution undergoes the light exposure, it will not be able to stain another gel. The used staining solution should be stored in the refrigerator, protected from light, between uses. We have successfully re-used the staining solution stored for up to 2 weeks, and used up to 4 times with little loss of signal (after 5 or 6 uses, the sensitivity was noticeably lower).