12 Useful Detergents for Your Experiments

1,2-Dipalmitoyl-rac-glycero-3-phosphocholine is a phospholipid with two palmitic acids and is the racemic mixture of Dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (also known as Colfosceril palmitate or DPPC). The phosphocholine head is sensitive to electric charges at the membrane surface when bound to pure phospholipids. When added to a solution containing charged ions, this sensitivity can shift the nitrogen cation away from a lack of positive charge or towards a positive charge in solution. In a research environment, it is useful in studying changes of biological membranes and liposomes. Because of its ability to form simple phospholipid bilayers, it is useful in computer modeling of bilayers in dynamic situations. Modeling can also be extended to interactions between DPPC and other biologically active molecules (like pharmaceuticals) as an analog for the same naturally occurring process. It is also useful in the formation of reconstituted HDL particles.

CHAPS, also known as ((3-cholamidopropyl)dimethylammonio)-1-propanesulfonate, is a zwitterionic surfactant primarily used to solubilize membrane proteins and other macromolecules.

Oftentimes, mild detergents are used in cell lysis applications by interfering with membrane interactions.

Chlorhexidine is a cationic polybisbiguanide used as a detergent as well as a bactericidal, anti-viral and antifungal agent. It has been used against an array of oral pathogens, with a high effectiveness toward gram-negative bacteria.

Chlorhexidine, when placed into physiological pH, dissociates into its cationic form and binds to the negatively charged bacterial wall. This binding will cause cytosolic leakage at low concentrations and lytic effects at high chlorohexidine concentrations. However, chlorhexidine activity can be halted upon interaction with anionic compounds.

Chlorhexidine diacetate salt is a diacetate derivative of a cationic polybisbiguanide that has bactericidal, anti-fungal and anti-viral activity. It has also been used for in vivo pharmacokinetic research to investigate drug release rates.

Chlorhexidine, when placed into physiological pH, dissociates into its cationic form and binds to the negatively charged bacterial wall. This binding will cause cytosolic leakage at low concentrations and lytic effects at high chlorohexidine concentrations. However, chlorhexidine activity can be halted upon interaction with anionic compounds.

Chlorhexidine HCl is the cationic salt form of chlorhexidine, a bactericidal detergent. Chlorhexidine HCl has strong bactericidal activity and is used for in vitro bactericidal assays as a positive control.

The compound functions as a bactericidal agent by interacting with the negatively charged bacterial cell wall. Contact of the cationic salt with the cell wall causes cytosolic leakage at low chlorohexidine HCl concentrations and cell lysis at higher concentrations. Duration of antibacterial effects has been shown to be enhanced by incorporating chlorhexidine HCl into human albumin microspheres. This lengthened antibacterial activity against Escheria coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Deoxycholic acid (typically abbreviated DOC) is a bile acid typically found in the intestine. Bile acids typically cause DNA damage and can lead to an increase in mutations. Deoxycholic acid can be covalently attached to glycol chitosan as a delivery system in nanotechnological applications. Many other applications, such as those to perform 1,4-addition of diethylzinc to acyclic enones, requires the binding of Deoxycholic acid to other molecules to create ligands that are conducive to addition of metals to certain enones.

In more general applications, Deoxycholic acid is used to increase the solubilization of cells. Deoxycholic acid is typically used as an ingredient in the creation of RIPA buffers, added in concentrations between 0.5% and 2.5%. These buffers are typically used to extract proteins from membranes and cytoplasm. This method of extraction contains the ionic detergent SDS and is useful for the disruption of nuclear membranes and their associated proteins. Proteins extracted via this initial procedure can be used in other analytical procedures like western blot or a BCA protein assay.

The primary attribute of DDM is its capability to extract hydrophobic proteins while maintaining the solution-phase protein conformation. DDM also allows the protein to be reformed following denaturization. Most membrane-bound proteins are α-helix bundles, which are less robust to changes in their cellular environment. DDM offers a detergent capable of preserving these proteins. This is in contrast to other, harsher ionic detergents that destabilize and permanently denature α-helical membrane-bound proteins. DDM has been used to solubilize the multidrug-transporter protein, EmrE, as well as the nucleoside-specific porin protein, Tsx.

Glycochenodeoxycholic acid (GCDC) is a bile salt that is used as an anionic detergent to solubilize lipids. In other applications GCDC can be used to induce hepatocyte apoptosis and inhibit calcium phosphate precipitation in vitro. GCDC is also used in applications analyzing the damage done to DNA by other bile acids.

Octylglucoside is a nonionic, mild detergent used to isolate membrane proteins in the native state. It can easily be removed during final extractions by dialysis.

Characteristics that contribute to this detergent’s usefulness are its water solubility, chemical structure and small-sized micelles.

Octylglucoside also provides higher resolution of proteins in 2D electrophoresis.

Octylthioglucoside is a nonionic detergent that has been used to isolate membrane proteins without inactivation. This product is effective in a variety of protein solubilization and cell lysis processes. And detergents of this nature are ideal when studying the conformation and structure of proteins because the secondary and tertiary structures remain intact.

Compared to octylglucoside, octylthioglycoside is more stable. And it is stable in aqueous solution and easily removed by dialysis. This product is intended for use as a detergent to solubilize membrane-bound proteins in their native state.