Life Science Buffers
Balanced salt solutions and powders used for molecular, protein, nucleic acid, and cell biology applications including cell culture, electrophoresis, ELISA, and chromatography processes; available in a variety of formulations and grades.
Buffer solutions serve to keep pH (acidity or alkalinity) nearly constant in a variety of chemical and biological applications. For example, a bicarbonate buffer helps maintain the pH of blood, a buffered saline maintains cellular contents at a consistent pH level, and buffers help maintain a narrow pH range for enzymes to function correctly.
Most biological samples used in research are kept at a pH of about 7.4. Common biological buffers used for tissue culture include Dulbeccos phosphate buffered saline (PBS), Tris base, HEPES, MOPS, PIPES, and other formulations developed for specific cell lines or applications. Most buffers used in cell culture are also DNase-, RNase-, and protease-free.
The choice of buffer for a particular biological reaction or site depends on several factors:
- Temperature
- Desired or target pH
- Buffer toxicity (to the system)
- Buffer interactions with other system components
Corning™ Cell Culture Buffers: Dulbecco's Phosphate-Buffered Salt Solution 1X
With low endotoxin content.
Gibco™ PBS, pH 7.4
Gibco PBS, pH 7.4, is a balanced salt solution ideal for cell culture applications. It lacks calcium, magnesium, and phenol red, preventing cell adhesion and assay interference. Trusted for quality, Gibco PBS ensures reliable results in cell washing, transport, and reagent preparation.
Fisher Chemical PBS Tablets, Phosphate Buffered Saline, Fisher BioReagents™
Phosphate Buffered Saline Tablets, CAS Number-7647-14-5, 7447-40-7, 100 tablets, Clear, Gray, White, 5/8 in., 600 SEC max., CAUTION!
Fisher Chemical Tris Hydrochloride, 1M Solution (pH 7.5/Mol. Biol.), Fisher BioReagents™
CAS: 77-86-1 Molecular Formula: C4H11NO3 Molecular Weight (g/mol): 121.136 InChI Key: LENZDBCJOHFCAS-UHFFFAOYSA-N Synonym: Tris-HCl PubChem CID: 6503 ChEBI: CHEBI:9754 IUPAC Name: 2-amino-2-(hydroxymethyl)propane-1,3-diol SMILES: C(C(CO)(CO)N)O
Fisher Chemical HEPES Buffer, 1M Solution, pH 7.3 (Molecular Biology), Fisher BioReagents™
Commonly used buffering agent
Gibco™ PBS, pH 7.4 (flow cytometry grade)
Phosphate-Buffered Saline (PBS) is a balanced salt solution used for a variety of applications, including reagent preparation, diluting cells for flow cytometry and as a cell culture reagent.
Gibco™ PBS, pH 7.2
Gibco PBS, pH 7.2, is a balanced salt solution widely used in various cell culture applications to maintain a stable pH and osmotic balance, making it ideal as a wash, transport, and dilution buffer.
Gibco™ DPBS (10X), no calcium, no magnesium
Dulbecco's phosphate-buffered saline (DPBS) is a balanced salt solution used for a variety of cell culture applications, such as washing cells before dissociation, transporting cells or tissue samples, diluting cells for counting, and preparing reagents.
Invitrogen™ PBS - Phosphate-Buffered Saline (10X) pH 7.4, RNase-free
PBS (phosphate buffered saline) is a pH-adjusted blend of ultrapure-grade phosphate buffers and saline solutions.
Corning™ Cell Culture Phosphate Buffered Saline (1X)
With low endotoxin content. Without calcium and magnesium.
Fisher Chemical Tris Hydrochloride (Small White Flakes/Molecular Biology), Fisher BioReagents
CAS: 1185-53-1 Molecular Formula: C4H12ClNO3 Molecular Weight (g/mol): 157.594 InChI Key: QKNYBSVHEMOAJP-UHFFFAOYSA-N Synonym: Tris(hydroxymethyl)aminomethane Hydrochloride PubChem CID: 93573 IUPAC Name: 2-amino-2-(hydroxymethyl)propane-1,3-diol;hydrochloride SMILES: C(C(CO)(CO)N)O.Cl
Fisher Chemical MES (Fine White Crystals), Fisher BioReagents
CAS: 145224-94-8 Molecular Formula: C6H15NO5S Molecular Weight (g/mol): 213.248 InChI Key: MIIIXQJBDGSIKL-UHFFFAOYSA-N Synonym: 2-(4-Morpholino)ethane Sulfonic Acid,2-(N-Morpholino)ethanesulfonic acid hydrate PubChem CID: 16218417 IUPAC Name: 2-morpholin-4-ylethanesulfonic acid;hydrate SMILES: C1COCCN1CCS(=O)(=O)O.O
Gibco™ DPBS, no calcium, no magnesium
Dulbecco's Phosphate-Buffered Saline (DPBS) is a balanced salt solution used for a variety of cell culture applications, such as washing cells before dissociation, transporting cells or tissue, diluting cells for counting, and preparing reagents.