Protocol

Staining Membrane-Bound Proteins with Coomassie Blue R250

This protocol was adapted from "Preparative 2D Gel Electrophoresis with Immobilized pH Gradients," Chapter 4 in Proteins and Proteomics (ed. Simpson). Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA, 2003.

INTRODUCTION

Coomassie Blue R250 permanently stains membrane-bound proteins and is compatible with PVDF and nitrocellulose membranes, but it is incompatible with nylon membranes. This technique is relatively insensitive, with a detection limit of ~1.5 µg of protein. One drawback of Coomassie Blue staining is that it produces a high background that can make interpretation of results difficult.