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50983

Sigma-Aldrich

Guanidine thiocyanate solution

BioUltra, ~6 M in H2O

Synonym(s):

Guanidine isothiocyanate, Guanidinium isothiocyanate, Guanidinium rhodanide, Guanidinium thiocyanate

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About This Item

Linear Formula:
NH2C(=NH)NH2 · HSCN
CAS Number:
Molecular Weight:
118.16
Beilstein:
3563461
MDL number:
UNSPSC Code:
12352107
PubChem Substance ID:
NACRES:
NA.25

grade

Molecular Biology

Quality Level

product line

BioUltra

concentration

~6 M in H2O

impurities

DNases, none detected
RNases, none detected
insoluble matter, passes filter test
phosphatases, none detected
proteases, none detected

refractive index

n20/D 1.474-1.483

pH

4.5-7.0 (25 °C)

anion traces

chloride (Cl-): ≤500 mg/kg
sulfate (SO42-): ≤50 mg/kg

cation traces

Al: ≤1 mg/kg
As: ≤0.1 mg/kg
Ba: ≤1 mg/kg
Bi: ≤1 mg/kg
Ca: ≤5 mg/kg
Cd: ≤1 mg/kg
Co: ≤1 mg/kg
Cr: ≤1 mg/kg
Cu: ≤1 mg/kg
Fe: ≤1 mg/kg
K: ≤20 mg/kg
Li: ≤1 mg/kg
Mg: ≤1 mg/kg
Mn: ≤1 mg/kg
Mo: ≤1 mg/kg
Na: ≤500 mg/kg
Ni: ≤1 mg/kg
Pb: ≤1 mg/kg
Sr: ≤1 mg/kg
Zn: ≤1 mg/kg

absorption

cut-off at 280 nm

SMILES string

SC#N.NC(N)=N

InChI

1S/CH5N3.CHNS/c2-1(3)4;2-1-3/h(H5,2,3,4);3H

InChI key

ZJYYHGLJYGJLLN-UHFFFAOYSA-N

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General description

Guanidine thiocyanate is a chaotropic agent that functions as a strong protein denaturant. It is widely used in RNA isolation protocols. Guanidine thiocyanate can irreversibly inactivate RNase and DNase and breaks cellular membranes. It dissolves proteins by disturbing their secondary structures. Guanidine thiocyanate also separates nucleoproteins from nucleic acids and aids the digestion of the proteins with proteases. It improves the activity of proteinase K thus making it the protease of choice.

Application

Guanidine thiocyanate solution has been used to extract:
  • plasma RNA from human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected and control patients
  • total RNA from collected tissues (shoots, flowers, fruits, and seeds)
  • in reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis, RNA from teratocarcinoma cell line (Tera-1)

Caution

possibly crystallized product can be dissolved again by slightly heating to 40-50 °C.

Pictograms

CorrosionExclamation mark

Signal Word

Danger

Hazard Classifications

Acute Tox. 4 Dermal - Acute Tox. 4 Inhalation - Acute Tox. 4 Oral - Aquatic Chronic 3 - Eye Dam. 1 - Skin Corr. 1C

Supplementary Hazards

Storage Class Code

8A - Combustible corrosive hazardous materials

WGK

WGK 2

Flash Point(F)

Not applicable

Flash Point(C)

Not applicable

Personal Protective Equipment

dust mask type N95 (US), Eyeshields, Gloves

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