What are the applications of proteinase K?

Proteinase K is used extensively in a wide range of molecular biology applications and next generation sequencing (NGS) and microarray technologies. 

In molecular biology Proteinase K is used to: 

• Digest proteins and remove contamination from nucleic acid preparations
• Inactivate nucleases DNases and RNases that might otherwise degrade the DNA or RNA sample during purification
• Obtain characteristic protein fragments to be used in determining the structure and function of proteins
• Isolate highly native and undamaged DNA or RNA by rapidly inactivating mammalian and microbial DNases and RNases 
• Specifically modify cell surface proteins in order to analyze membrane structures for protein localization
• Digest tissue as an alternative option for preparing samples for quantitative analysis via liquid chromatography - tandem mass spectrometry
• Detect Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy proteins, which are uniquely resistant to proteolytic degradation.

In next generation sequencing (NGS) and microarray technologies, Proteinase K is used to: 

• Inactivate nucleases and purify nucleic acid during the extraction of DNA and RNA from bacteria, yeast, and plant cell and mammalian cell lysates
• Improve cloning efficiency of PCR products
• Inactivate enzyme cocktails in ribonuclease protection assays
• Prepare samples for quantifying DNA adduct levels using accelerator mass spectrometry
• Optimize RNA yields from primary breast tumors for microarray studies