DNA purification is one of the steps in the sample preparation process. It removes salts and enzymes from samples that have been lysed, or PCR products prior to cloning and sequencing. It also eliminates unwanted PCR-induced artefacts like primer dimers as well as nucleotides that have not been integrated. DNA purification is an essential step in molecular biology that requires careful planning in order to obtain high quality, reliable results.
The process of purifying DNA can be accomplished in various ways. The standard DNA isolation techniques include a myriad of steps, like leukocyte separation or red blood cell lysis, to remove inhibitors of heme protein of the PCR reaction. They also include deproteinization, RNAse treatment as well as precipitation using isopropanol and ethanol and finally DNA elimination. The majority of these procedures require the use of specially designed equipment, like an electrophoresis device and a biosafety cabinet because of the hazardous intercalating dyes used in the gel electrophoresis.
Other methods of DNA purification use spin columns or 96 well filter plates to eliminate contaminants by adsorbing them to the surface of the plate or column. These methods can be lengthy particularly when you have lots of samples or if the columns have to be manually refilled.
Dipsticks dramatically reduce the number of steps involved in processing samples to just three. They bind nucleic acids using waxy cellulose and release them when in contact with water. This technique is particularly useful for low-resource settings such as remote sites and teaching labs. Its simplicity (30 s per sample) makes it ideal for diagnostic molecular tests, such as detection of disease and genotype screening.