Staining proteins in gels
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Updated: Jun 27, 2026

Staining Proteins in Gels
Published on: July 8, 2008
Sean Gallagher1, Deb Chakavarti
1Keck Graduate Institute of Applied Life Sciences, UVP, LLC, USA.
Abstract:
Following separation by electrophoretic methods, proteins in a gel can be detected by several staining methods. This unit describes protocols for detecting proteins by four popular methods. Coomassie blue staining is an easy and rapid method. Silver staining, while more time consuming, is considerably more sensitive and can thus be used to detect smaller amounts of protein. Fluorescent staining is a popular alternative to traditional staining procedures, mainly because it is more sensitive than Coomassie staining, and is often as sensitive as silver staining. Staining of proteins with SYPRO Orange and SYPRO Ruby are also demonstrated here.
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