I am thinking about purchasing a Bioanalyzer 2100 or a QIAxcel Advanced System. Could anyone advice me which system is better/cheaper for use? Or if there is any alternative equipment which have less expensive consumables? Maybe a better idea would be to buy a regular CE machine? Our lab is starting a project which is aiming to develop a standardized protocol for multiplex detection of several potato viruses directly from tubers. We will be working in collaboration with other labs, and I was thinking that it would be cool to have a protocol based on the specific RIN value. However, I do not want to end up with equipment which is expensive in use and will be collecting dust after finishing this project. We do work also with proteins and DNA on other projects, and potentially I would have an application for a Bioanalyzer, especially in combination with OffGel 3100. But since I never had a chance to use a Bioanalyzer 2100 or QIAxcel, I am afraid that both may be too expensive to use in routine lab work.
Well the Bioanalyzer 2100 is a nice System but nevertheless the consumables are very expensive and you can´t buy them when they are cheap and store them. The reagents are only stable for ~ 6 month. But if you want to compare the quality of RNAs it is a very easy and cool system also you only need a small amount of RNA ~ 1 µl. The handling of the machine is also very simple and it works for it self and keeps the results. Why don´t you contact your local dealer and ask for a presentation of the machine? They also have a new chip based system which is more expensive in acquirement but i think the consumables are cheaper and you can store them for longer time. I´m afraid I can´t tell you anything about the DNA/ Protein work because I never used this option. Nevertheless I hope this answer helps you somehow.
It really depend on your needs, Qiaxcel is a good one however the consumables are not cheap
I routinely use the Bioanalyzer 2100 CE machine. It can completely replace SDS-PAGE or native-PAGE analyses with far less time and effort. There is an internal standard which helps with data analyses and the software is very used friendly. This CE machine won't be left to collect dust if you regularly do PAGE gels as it will act as a replacement.
Deborah, thank you for your advice. I think you are right and we do a lot of SDS and native PAGE for proteins. I am just concerned that it will be much, much more expensive than making own gels ;). On the other hand, Bioanalyzer would allow much more accurate analysis, especially for plant cultivar or bacterial strain characterization and identification.
- Badges
- Science topic
- Similar topics
- Biological Science
- Botany
- Plant Biology
- Plant Biotechnology