I'm joining the pig-pile on the Emulsiflex. I like it because:
a. The folks at Avestin are very helpful (they're Canadian--just
naturally nice)
b. It'll break yeast as well as E coli
c. It seems pretty gentle to me (we pack it in ice, so there's
negligible sample heating)
d. It's reproducible--if I put a sample through twice, I KNOW it'll be
well broken, whereas I'm never really sure with a sonicator (maybe the tip is
aging/dirty/pitted, maybe it's not tuned properly, etc. etc...of course this
may just be my OCD talking)
e. It gave me an excuse to go to Sears and buy a big hunkin' air
compressor
Having said that, it requires regular lubrication, and periodic replacement of
valves, etc., but the vendor is very helpful about talking you through
maintenance (and they have at least one person who travels a lot, who will stop
by while he's in town, should we need hand-holding).
Pat
On 4 Feb 2014, at 11:49 AM, Phoebe A. Rice wrote:
> Some time ago, there was a nice discussion of cost-effective, wimpy
> protein-friendly ways to break open E. coli. We're thinking about replacing
> an aging sonicator. If people have a favorite gizmo, could they repeat that
> advice?
> thank you,
> Phoebe Rice
>
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Patrick J. Loll, Ph. D.
Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Director, Biochemistry Graduate Program
Drexel University College of Medicine
Room 10-102 New College Building
245 N. 15th St., Mailstop 497
Philadelphia, PA 19102-1192 USA
(215) 762-7706
pat.l...@drexelmed.edu
