Destaining apparatus for electrophoresis gels

Claim 1

Apparatus for destaining a plurality of electrophoresis gels, said apparatus comprising: (a) a stack of gel support trays, each of said trays comprising a member independently selected from the group consisting of: (1) a tray for supporting a plurality of gel tubes, comprising: four raised sides and a flat base having an elongate opening along one of said sides; a fluid-penetrable gel-supporting horizontal partition dividing the interior of said tray into upper and lower portions; a plurality of non-fluid-penetrable vertical partitions dividing said upper portion into a plurality of troughs parallel to said elongate opening, each trough sized to receive approximately one tube gel; and a plurality of baffles in said lower portion parallel to and in staggered relation with said vertical partitions to define an undulated fluid flow path passing through said tube gels and down through said elongate opening; and (2) a tray for supporting a gel slab, comprising: four raised sides and a flat base having an elongate opening along one of said sides; and means for retaining a gel slab on said base clear of said elongate opening with substantially no obstruction to fluid flow across said base toward said opening; (b) means for interlocking said trays in said stack to substantially prevent lateral slippage; (c) means on each tray in said stack for guiding the stacking thereof such that said elongate openings in all adjacent pairs of trays are at opposite sides of said stack; (d) a cover plate to partially enclose the top tray in said stack leaving an elongate opening along the side opposite that of the elongate opening in said top tray; (e) a filter capable of absorbing gel stain from a destaining fluid; (f) means for guiding fluid flow leaving the elongate opening of the bottom tray of said stack through said filter; (g) a tank for retaining destaining fluid and for receiving said tray stack, cover plate, filter and fluid flow guide means submerged in said fluid; and (h) means for circulating fluid down through said tray stack, through said fluid flow guide means and said filter and up the exterior of said stack to re-enter said stack through the elongate opening of said cover plate.