The Importance Of Metabolic Labeling Reagents

1. The Importance Of Metabolic Labeling Reagents Biological research activities often require the use of molecular labels that have the potential to bond covalently with the protein in question in order to facilitate detection or to aid on the purification of the protein that has been labeled. The strategies used for labeling result in the attachment of various molecules covalently. This includes reporter enzymes, biotin, radioactive isotopes and fluorophores in order to aid in nucleotide sequence and also to target the proteins. Various kinds of labels are available. The use of the label is dependent on the specificity of the applications. The kind of label used as well as the strategy must be considered carefully and also must be tailored for the application. Protein labeling strategies There are two strategies used for protein labeling: in vivo and in vitro. These strategies aid in nucleic acid and protein labeling. Metabolic labeling is used to label all the proteins and nucleic acids. This is done within a cell by culturing with the labeled amino acids and nucleotides respectively. Metabolic labeling can prove out to be toxic and this is entirely dependent on the kind of label being used and as well as on the metabolic labeling reagents being used in the entire process. Metabolic labeling refers to the manner in which the modification machinery and endogenous synthesis of living cells is used to incorporate affinity tags or detection into biomolecules. This can be accomplished by culturing organisms and cells in a media. Metabolic labeling is a strategy that is quite powerful. This is because it is quite simple when it comes to performing and also enables the metabolic rate measurement. Radioactive metabolic labeling Radioactive analogs are used quite commonly for the labeling of organisms and cells. The macromolecules that have been labeled with the use of radioactive analogs can be detected easily with the use of sensitive radiometric techniques. This can be achieved through positron emission tomography or liquid scintillation. There are few disadvantages of using radioactive analogs although these can be detected easily and are relatively inexpensive. The disadvantages include generation of radioactive wastes, safety hazards, radioactive decay and toxicity to organisms. Use of metabolic labeling reagents The labeling reagents result in the distribution of label throughout the biomolecules and this is entirely dependent on the composition. Most of the labeling strategies make use of chemical analogs that are structured almost identically or are pretty similar to the monomers that exist naturally. It isn’t quite possible to have site specific control or the addition of labels. Metabolic labeling reagents make it easy to label the biomolecules during the purification process. Choosing the metabolic agents is not quite easy. It requires certain amount of study

2. of the molecules being utilized. There are several kinds of labeling agents and these are used based on the reaction conditions, medium in which it is being carried out and the nature of the molecules. Specific metabolic reagents can help in accomplishing the task of labeling the proteins or the biomolecules being considered in a study. Find the largest selection of Azide-, and alkyne-containing metabolic labeling reagents from Click Chemistry Tools. Expand the boundary of your discovery research with our click chemistry toolbox. Look at clickchemistrytools.com for Metabolic Labeling Reagents.