Sodium dodecyl sulfate

Sodium dodecyl sulfate is an anionic surfactant that lowers surface tension and binds proteins, disrupting their folded structures. It is used in detergents and laboratory methods including SDS-PAGE.

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Surfactant: A substance that lowers surface or interfacial tension, often by accumulating at the boundary between different phases. Sodium dodecyl sulfate is a surfactant whose charged head and hydrophobic tail drive its effects.
SDS-PAGE: A gel electrophoresis method that separates proteins mainly by molecular mass after treatment with sodium dodecyl sulfate. Sodium dodecyl sulfate unfolds proteins and gives them a broadly similar charge-to-mass ratio in this method.
Dodecyl sulfate: The negatively charged sulfate ester anion containing a twelve-carbon hydrocarbon chain. This anion is the surfactant portion of sodium dodecyl sulfate.
Sodium laureth sulfate: An anionic surfactant containing ethoxylated chains, commonly used in personal-care and cleaning products. Unlike sodium dodecyl sulfate, it has ethoxy units that can change mildness and formulation behavior.
Critical micelle concentration: The surfactant concentration above which micelles begin to form in a solution. Above this concentration, sodium dodecyl sulfate molecules aggregate into micelles that solubilize oily material.
Laemmli system: A widely used SDS-PAGE protocol employing a discontinuous buffer system to concentrate and separate proteins. Its sample buffer uses sodium dodecyl sulfate to denature proteins before electrophoresis.
Sodium: A chemical element with symbol Na, whose compounds commonly contain positively charged sodium ions. Sodium ions balance the negative charge of the dodecyl sulfate anion.
Sodium cholate: An anionic bile salt detergent used to solubilize membranes and membrane proteins. Its steroid-based structure differs from sodium dodecyl sulfate’s linear chain and often preserves more protein interactions.
Micelle: An aggregate of surfactant molecules, typically arranged with hydrophobic regions inward and water-compatible groups outward. Micelles formed by sodium dodecyl sulfate help disperse hydrophobic substances in water.
Detergent: A cleaning substance containing surfactants that help remove oils and disperse dirt in water. Sodium dodecyl sulfate is used as an active cleaning surfactant in detergent formulations.