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Updated: May 14, 2026

Agarose Gel Electrophoresis for the Separation of DNA Fragments
Published on: April 20, 2012
Diffusion of DNA molecules in gel at high electric fields
P Pasciak1, M J Krawczyk, E Gudowska-Nowak
1Faculty of Physics and Applied Computer Science, AGH University of Science and Technology, 30-059 Kraków, Poland.
Abstract:
Problems related to the gel electrophoretic migration of polymers can be investigated by models based on a Brownian-type ratchet where a particle can undergo a net transport on a potential energy surface that is externally driven to fluctuate between several distinct states. Here we describe the method of polymer transport and separation by means of the cellular automata technique. Numerical simulations of the polymer reptation in the model system allow us to understand the band-broadening processes in the gel electrophoresis experiments. They indicate also possible ways of fine-tuning the parameters in designing desired resolution of the experiments.
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