Isolated nuclei and trypan blue - Silly question .......... (Jul/02/2009 )

Hi all,

Long time listener, first time caller!

I'm currently isolating nuclei from HeLa cells and many protocols say that they "confirm the nuclear isolation and purity using trypan blue". I have used trypan in viability assays in the past to count blue/pink cells, however, what should isolated nuclei look like under trypan and how would they look different from whole cells?

Many thanks!

They will look just like whole cells, only a lot smaller. The trypan blue should still be excluded by intact membranes.

bob1 on Jul 3 2009, 01:14 AM said: