Tricine
Encyclopedia
Tricine is an organic compound
that is used in buffer solution
s. The name tricine comes from tris
and glycine
from which it was derived. It is a zwitterion
ic amino acid
with a useful buffering range of pH 7.4-8.8. It is a white crystalline powder that is moderately soluble in water. It has a pH
of 4.4-5.2; its pKa
1 at 25 °C is 2.3, while its pKa
2 at 20 °C is 8.15. Along with bicine
, it is one of Good's buffering agents
. Good first prepared tricine to buffer chloroplast reactions.
buffer and is also used in resuspension of cell pellets. It has a lower negative charge than glycine
allowing it to migrate faster. In addition its high ionic strength causes more ion
movement and less protein
movement. This allows for low molecular weight proteins to be separated in lower percent acrylamide gels. Tricine has been documented in the separation of proteins in the range of 1 to 100 kDa
by electrophoresis. The tricine buffer at 25 mmol/L was found to be the most effective buffer among the ten tested for ATP
assays using firefly luciferase. Tricine has also been found to be an effective scavenger of hydroxyl radicals in a study of radiation-induced membrane damage.
Organic compound
An organic compound is any member of a large class of gaseous, liquid, or solid chemical compounds whose molecules contain carbon. For historical reasons discussed below, a few types of carbon-containing compounds such as carbides, carbonates, simple oxides of carbon, and cyanides, as well as the...
that is used in buffer solution
Buffer solution
A buffer solution is an aqueous solution consisting of a mixture of a weak acid and its conjugate base or a weak base and its conjugate acid. It has the property that the pH of the solution changes very little when a small amount of strong acid or base is added to it. Buffer solutions are used as a...
s. The name tricine comes from tris
Tris
Tris is an abbreviation of the organic compound known as trisaminomethane, with the formula 3CNH2. Tris is extensively used in biochemistry and molecular biology. In biochemistry, tris is widely used as a component of buffer solutions, such as in TAE and TBE buffer, especially for solutions of...
and glycine
Glycine
Glycine is an organic compound with the formula NH2CH2COOH. Having a hydrogen substituent as its 'side chain', glycine is the smallest of the 20 amino acids commonly found in proteins. Its codons are GGU, GGC, GGA, GGG cf. the genetic code.Glycine is a colourless, sweet-tasting crystalline solid...
from which it was derived. It is a zwitterion
Zwitterion
In chemistry, a zwitterion is a neutral molecule with a positive and a negative electrical charge at different locations within that molecule. Zwitterions are sometimes also called inner salts.-Examples:...
ic amino acid
Amino acid
Amino acids are molecules containing an amine group, a carboxylic acid group and a side-chain that varies between different amino acids. The key elements of an amino acid are carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen...
with a useful buffering range of pH 7.4-8.8. It is a white crystalline powder that is moderately soluble in water. It has a pH
PH
In chemistry, pH is a measure of the acidity or basicity of an aqueous solution. Pure water is said to be neutral, with a pH close to 7.0 at . Solutions with a pH less than 7 are said to be acidic and solutions with a pH greater than 7 are basic or alkaline...
of 4.4-5.2; its pKa
PKA
PKA, pKa, or other similar variations may stand for:* pKa, the symbol for the acid dissociation constant at logarithmic scale* Protein kinase A, a class of cAMP-dependent enzymes* Pi Kappa Alpha, the North-American social fraternity...
1 at 25 °C is 2.3, while its pKa
PKA
PKA, pKa, or other similar variations may stand for:* pKa, the symbol for the acid dissociation constant at logarithmic scale* Protein kinase A, a class of cAMP-dependent enzymes* Pi Kappa Alpha, the North-American social fraternity...
2 at 20 °C is 8.15. Along with bicine
Bicine
Bicine is an organic compound used as a buffering agent. It is one of Good's buffers and has a pKa of 8.35 at 20 °C....
, it is one of Good's buffering agents
Good's buffers
Good's buffers are twelve buffering agents selected and described by Norman Good and colleagues in 1966. Good selected the buffers based on a number of criteria which make them candidates for use in biochemistry and biological research...
. Good first prepared tricine to buffer chloroplast reactions.
Applications
Tricine is a commonly used electrophoresisElectrophoresis
Electrophoresis, also called cataphoresis, is the motion of dispersed particles relative to a fluid under the influence of a spatially uniform electric field. This electrokinetic phenomenon was observed for the first time in 1807 by Reuss , who noticed that the application of a constant electric...
buffer and is also used in resuspension of cell pellets. It has a lower negative charge than glycine
Glycine
Glycine is an organic compound with the formula NH2CH2COOH. Having a hydrogen substituent as its 'side chain', glycine is the smallest of the 20 amino acids commonly found in proteins. Its codons are GGU, GGC, GGA, GGG cf. the genetic code.Glycine is a colourless, sweet-tasting crystalline solid...
allowing it to migrate faster. In addition its high ionic strength causes more ion
Ion
An ion is an atom or molecule in which the total number of electrons is not equal to the total number of protons, giving it a net positive or negative electrical charge. The name was given by physicist Michael Faraday for the substances that allow a current to pass between electrodes in a...
movement and less protein
Protein
Proteins are biochemical compounds consisting of one or more polypeptides typically folded into a globular or fibrous form, facilitating a biological function. A polypeptide is a single linear polymer chain of amino acids bonded together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of...
movement. This allows for low molecular weight proteins to be separated in lower percent acrylamide gels. Tricine has been documented in the separation of proteins in the range of 1 to 100 kDa
KDA
KDA may refer to:* Karachi Development Authority* Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace* Kotelawala Defence Academy* Kramer Design Associates* Lithium diisopropylamide, KDA is the potassium analogue of lithium diisopropylamideOr kDa may refer to:...
by electrophoresis. The tricine buffer at 25 mmol/L was found to be the most effective buffer among the ten tested for ATP
Adenosine triphosphate
Adenosine-5'-triphosphate is a multifunctional nucleoside triphosphate used in cells as a coenzyme. It is often called the "molecular unit of currency" of intracellular energy transfer. ATP transports chemical energy within cells for metabolism...
assays using firefly luciferase. Tricine has also been found to be an effective scavenger of hydroxyl radicals in a study of radiation-induced membrane damage.