Scanner type for 2D SDS-PAGE analysis. - A simple and direct question! (Dec/14/2009 )

Hey there!!!

My question: Can I use an ordinary scanner to digitalize my gels for later analysis on PDQuest?!

The point is that here in Brazil the "official" scanners from Bio-Rad or GE are very, very, very expensive (impotation + taxes).

Research here is difficult, so we have to manage things.

If yes, which resulution should I use, and wich image forma (TIFF, ...).

Thank you, and merry X-mas!

Ivanov_br on Dec 14 2009, 12:53 PM said:

I used a Bio-Rad imager to take an image of a 2D gel. The format was a 1D format that had to be converted to a 2D format. The problem with using a typical photo file type is that it doesn't take all the image information a Bio-Rad imager would. The imager will record the intensity of each protein spot, which is then used to compare to other gels or other spots. Without that information, PDQuest is pretty useless, and I'm not sure if you'd even be able to do anything with the image.

With that said, I've never tried to import a standard image file, I can't say that it definitely won't work. I just don't think it will.

Hi Ivanov,

I second fishdoc's concern. If you do try to use a regular scanner, save in a .tiff file. This is the recommended format to do quantification analysis on spots or bands, according to our core facility manager. JPEG compresses the file, so some of the image data may be lost or skewed.

regards,

lab rat

you can use a regular scanner and tiff files with imagej (there is a plug-in for 2d analysis).

it would be better to scan a photo of the gel than to place a wet gel on an unsealed scanner.

if it is a digital photo then you can feed the image directly into imagej.