Radical Gas-Based DNA Decontamination for Ultra-Sensitive Molecular Experiments

Abstract

In this study, we tested a radical gas-based decontamination technique to prevent possible DNA contamination by the air and/or equipment used in molecular experiments. We prepared 10⁴ molecules of model DNA contaminant and placed the dried DNA into test tubes, which were then exposed to radical gas. Quantitative PCR analysis showed that, even after a short exposure time of 30 minutes, 99.54% of the model DNA contaminant was effectively decomposed to undetectable levels. Our results demonstrate that the radical gas-based treatment is a useful method for eliminating potential DNA contaminant in ultra-sensitive molecular experiments.