Electrophoresis of DNA and other polyelectrolytes: Physical mechanisms

The dramatic recent advances in molecular biology, which have opened a new era in medicine and biotechnology, rely on improved techniques to study large molecules. Electrophoresis is one of the most important of these. Separation of DNA by size, in particular, is at the heart of genome mapping and sequencing and is likely to play an increasing role in diagnosis. This article reviews, from the point of view of a physicist, the mechanisms responsible for electrophoretic separation of polyelectrolytes. This separation is mainly performed in gels, and a wide variety of migration mechanisms can come into play, depending on the polyelectrolyte’s architecture, on the electric fields applied, and on the properties of the gel. After a brief review of the thermodynamic and electrohydrodynamic principles relating to polyelectrolyte solutions, the author treats the phenomenology of electrophoresis and describes the conceptual and theoretical tools in the field. The reptation mechanisms, by which large flexible polyelectrolytes thread their way through the pores of the gel matrix, play a prominent role. Biased reptation, the extension of this model to electrophoresis, provides a very intuitive framework within which numerous physical ideas can be introduced and discussed. It has been the most popular theory in this domain, and it remains an inspiring concept for current development. There have also been important advances in experimental techniques such as single-molecule viodeomicroscopy and the development of nongel separation media and mechanisms. These, in turn, form the basis for fast-developing and innovative technologies like capillary electrophoresis, electrophoresis on microchips, and molecular ratchets.