University of Cambridge installs innovative gel documentation imaging system to save time with research on plant growth
Syngene reports that GeneFlash, its gel documentation system, is being used by researchers at the University of Cambridge as part of a method to study plant cell wall polysaccharides vital for plant growth.
The innovative GeneFlash records images without a PC, by downloading them onto a compact flash card, and is said to be unlike any other system currently available.
Researchers in the department of biochemistry at the University of Cambridge are using it to check the quality and size of PCR fragments containing mutations, prior to sequencing and cloning.
The DNA could then be used to genetically modify plants to produce different cell wall polysaccharides, so that the scientists can determine what effect the mutations in the genes have on the plant's growth.
Florence Goubet, a post-doctoral scientist from Paul Dupree's team in the department of biochemistry at the University commented: "We use GeneFlash to get an idea of whether it is worth continuing to take DNA fragments of between 500bp-3kb into the next stage of our work.
"We chose GeneFlash because it is easy to use and produces high quality images of our gels so we can check the inserts quickly. "Since the system is accurate, it allows us to make decisions with confidence on whether to continue with sequencing and cloning, which in the long term can save us wasting many hours of valuable research time">
