Molecular biology / Applied bioanalytics

Various molecular biology techniques are used in the molecular biology laboratory, for example to produce genetically modified microorganisms with optimised properties. The equipment therefore includes modern laboratory devices with which DNA can be amplified, analysed and introduced into microorganisms. DNA is amplified using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), for which two thermal cyclers with gradient function are available in the laboratory. For the subsequent DNA analysis, the laboratory is equipped with several gel electrophoresis devices and a compact UV gel documentation system. The laboratory also has a capillary sequencer and a real-time PCR device, which is used to quantitatively analyse gene expression.

The second area covers the training of students in applied bioanalytics. A microtitre plate reader is available for antibody-based diagnostics, which can be used to carry out enzyme-linked immunoassays, among other things. The laboratory also has several protein gel electrophoresis and western blotting devices. A gel documentation system with CCD camera is available for the detection of chemiluminescence signals in Western blotting.

Two laminar flow safety cabinets (class II), a CO2 incubator and two inverted microscopes are available for teaching cell culture. In addition, a fluorescence microscope enables the localisation of proteins in the cell using immunofluorescence labelling.

The molecular biology laboratory fulfils the requirements of safety level S1 according to GenTSV.