Gel Imaging System

Gel imaging systems, also known as gel documentation systems or gel docs, refers to equipment widely used in molecular biology laboratories for capturing high-quality images of nucleic acid and protein suspended within electrophoresis polyacrylamide or agarose gels/plate/membrane, western blots, as well as other samples like culture plates, in order to obtain a visual record of their results for further archiving, analysis, and data sharing. Generally, a gel doc includes an ultraviolet (UV) light transilluminator, a hood or a darkroom to shield external light sources and protect the user from UV exposure, a computer, software and a high-performance CCD camera for image capturing. Digital imaging of gels not only provides the benefits of convenient and effective data storage, but also allows advanced quantification and analysis.