Southern blotting - use new stack each time? - Or can you re-use the paper towels? (Jun/02/2005 )

Yet another dumb question, but I'm curious. When Southern blotting, do you use a fresh stack of paper towels each time you blot? Or do you re-use them? I do change the fliter papers surrounding the gel/membrane each time, but paper towels are in short supply in our lab & I hate throwing a 10 cm stack of them out each time! I use 20X SSC as transfer buffer & the bottom ones get wet with this, but the tops are still dry.

Any suggestions?

Thanks!

nmkr,

as long as you use the top ones that are still the dry then of course you can reuse them, you are using capliary action from dry paper towels to move the buffer and DNA from the gel onto the membrane if your towels are wet then the action is non existent.

I reuse the top layers of my towels that are not wet. we have a supply of paper towels but they are the expensive ones. so I try not to waste them!

Nick

Thanks Nick!