DNA binding to column - ethanol denatured or pure?

[Andreas "Mega" Stuermer]

Hi guys! 

Question on purification of DNA with a DNA purification kit (or a maxiprep kit).

The principle is that DNA binds to the silica columns, and then ethanol run above it so it washes away impurities. 

Here, pure ethanol that has not been denatured costs 30€+ per litre.. Because the government decided it's a good idea to punish also science with a heavy drinking tax on all alcohol.  Infact, the chemical companies here I only see with 80€/L

They add to Ethanol 1g/100L Denatonium benzoate and 1% Methylethylketon. 

Methylethylketon looks like it would evaporate easily, so that might not be an issue. 

 Denatonium benzoate - no idea if it binds to DNA or silica under the given condition. 

If you want very pure DNA, what would you do? Try to get expensive ethanol? 

[Dakota Hamill]

Given the volumes needed for >98% ethanol for prep kits you'll get
hundreds to a thousand preps out of a liter. No idea what the additive
would do on a spin kit.

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[Cathal Garvey]

It's possible to get 100% isopropanol and it can perform really well - I can't recall the differences but you get better/worse performance for different salts, and it takes a lot longer to re-dissolve isopropanol-washed DNA, but it's cheap and it doesn't absorb water the way ethanol does. Worth considering anyway..

Also, look into biofuel ethanol as an alternative to denatured industrial ethanol? You get it from suppliers of ethanol indoor burners. It's handy for spirit burners, but because it's used in burn-ey and evaporation-prone gadgets they use different denaturants. At the very least, they don't add nauseating smells to it.

I was able to buy 96% ethanol in jerrycans from one such supplier fairly cheaply. I never used it for nucleic acid work so I cannot say whether it's suitable.

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9 Jan 2021, 19:01 by dko...@gmail.com:

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[Andreas "Mega" Stuermer]

Thanks all, just bought overpriced lab ethanol. It feels good to throw money at a problem to make it go away