Pierce™ Silver Stain Kit (Thermo Scientific™)

The Pierce Silver Stain Kit is a rapid, ultra-sensitive, and versatile silver stain system for protein detection in polyacrylamide gels, yielding consistent and reliable results. It is a metallic silver (Ag) protein stain that yields a remarkably clear and uniform gel background. In standard mini gels, proteins are detectable at greater than 0.25 ng per band or spot. The protocol has been optimized for flexibility by allowing short or overnight gel fixation and staining steps without affecting staining performance (sensitivity or clarity). A short (one-minute) sensitization step, performed after gel fixation, yields results that are free of the characteristically dark or blotchy backgrounds often seen with homemade or other commercially available silver stains. This feature is beneficial when performing densitometric analysis of silver stained gels.

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Features:
• Sensitivity—detect proteins at 0.25 ng
• Protocol—gel staining can be performed within 5 min to 20 hrs, depending on desired sensitivity
• Gel-compatibility—staining performance is very good with a variety of commercial precast mini-gels and SDS-PAGE buffer-systems
• Workflow-compatible—mild chemical formulation ensures compatibility with mass spectrometry, sequencing, and other downstream procedures that depend on destaining and protein recovery

Silver staining methods generally use either glutaraldehyde or formaldehyde, which cause some covalent crosslinking of protein to each other and the gel matrix. To the extent that this crosslinking occurs, extraction or elution of protein from the gel will be inhibited. Pierce Silver Stain uses formaldehyde in the stain and developer working solutions, but the concentration is low enough that irreversible protein crosslinking is minimized.