Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate (SDS), pure

SDS is commonly used in the preparation of proteins for electrophoresis in SDS-PAGE. This compound works by disrupting non-covalent bonds in proteins, denaturing them and causing the proteins to lose their natural conformation. The new negative charge is significantly larger than the original charge of that protein. The electrostatic repulsion generated by the binding of SDS causes proteins to unfold into a rod-like shape, eliminating differences in shape as a factor of separation in the gel.