The Amersham™ QuickStain Kit contains a Cy™5 fluorophore and labeling buffer for easy detection of proteins in SDSPAGE gels and on Western blotting membranes. The ready to use Cy5 N-hydroxysuccinimide (NHS) ester and Tris labeling buffer ensure robust and consistent labeling for detection of proteins in diverse samples.

• Ease of use: Ready to use reagents for fast and convenient analysis of proteins following one-dimensional (1-D) electrophoresis and/or Western blotting
• Fast protocols: Choose between a quick 5 min protocol and a standard 30 min quantitative protocol
• Wide sample range: Stain complex and purified samples with protein concentrations ranging from 1 µg/ml to 20 mg/ml, without the need to pre-measure protein
• concentration
• Sensitivity: As good as silver staining, sub-ng sensitivity
• Broad dynamic range: With a fluorescence imager or scanner, it is possible to simultaneously detect main bands and impurity levels down to parts per thousand (0,1%)
• Robustness: A 10-fold dilution of samples with the labeling buffer, which has a high buffering capacity, ensures reproducible labeling at optimal pH for a wide
• variety of samples
• Versatility: Most materials exhibit low Cy5 fluorescence background, which makes the kit compatible with many common gel formats and membranes

With the easy Cy5 prelabeling of Amersham™ QuickStain, there is no need to do post-staining (e.g., Coomassie™ or silver staining) of gels or Ponceau S staining of membranes. The kit is compatible with common gel-buffer electrophoresis systems, including Tris-acetate and Tris-glycine buffer systems. Many plastic materials exhibit a low fluorescence background in the Cy5 spectral region, which makes Cy5 staining well suited for precise quantitation of proteins using a wide variety of gel formats (i.e. precast, homecast, cassettes, backed, and non backed). Using CCD imagers and laser scanners proteins can be detected with high sensitivity and a broad linear dynamic range. As a result, Amersham™ QuickStain can be used for a wide variety of protein analysis applications, from quick visualisation of protein content in different samples to accurate quantitation of target proteins using calibration curves.