Why are PCR consumables generally made of PP?

"As we all know, PCR is a basic experimental method in biochemical laboratories." The experimental results are always unsatisfactory, which may be due to slight contamination of PCR plastic consumables, or experimental interference caused by the introduction of inhibitors. There is another very important reason: Improper selection of consumables will also have a great impact on the experimental results.

There are many reasons that affect the results of PCR experiments: usually there are the following 7 kinds.

1. Primers: Primers are the key to the specific reaction of PCR, and the specificity of PCR products depends on the degree of complementarity between the primers and the template DNA;

2. Enzyme and its concentration;

3. The quality and concentration of dNTP;

4. Template (target gene) nucleic acid;

5. Mg2+ concentration;

6. Setting of temperature and time;

7. Number of cycles;

8. Equipment, consumables, etc.

Among the many influencing factors, consumables are one of the very important and easily overlooked factors.

There are many types of PCR consumables: 8-tubes, low-volume tubes, standard tubes, non-skirted, semi-skirted, full-skirted, and a series of PCR and qPCR plates. It is very difficult to choose, and there are many Common problems, let's take a look at the problems that everyone chooses PCR consumables, and how to solve them?

Why are PCR consumables generally made of PP?

Answer: PCR/qPCR consumables are generally made of polypropylene (PP), because it is a biologically inert material, the surface is not easy to adhere to biomolecules, and has good chemical resistance and temperature tolerance (can be autoclaved at 121 degrees) bacteria and can also withstand temperature changes during thermal cycling). These materials are usually in direct contact with reagents or samples, so high-quality materials and good processing techniques need to be selected during the production and preparation process.