Filtration-based staining of proteins on membranes.

A filtration-based staining method has been developed for sensitive estimation of proteins in a batch of samples. It is based on focused absorption of an applied protein standard (or sample) and dye solution on nitrocellulose membrane through an aqueous network of capillary channels formed between the membrane and a wetted filter paper. The method does not require any equipment for creating vacuum. Compared with the conventional pouring methods, the new approach reduces the consumption of staining solution and lowers the staining and destaining times (from 1.5 h to approximately 10 min) without compromising the sensitivity.