Bacterial Cell Disruption Using Bioruptor® Plus

Disruption of bacterial cells is required for releasing biological molecules from within the cells for various biological applications. Ultrasound technology has been widely used for such cell lysis applications. Ultrasonic disruption is based on cavitation, the creation of cavities in cell suspension. These cavities or small bubbles of dissolved gases or vapors arise from the alteration of pressure in liquids. The bubbles are capable of resonance vibration and produce vigorous eddying or microstreaming leading to mechanical stress that effectively lyses cells. Diagenode’s Bioruptor® sonication device uses state-of-the-art ultrasound technology to disrupt cells for biological, chemical, pharmaceutical, and industrial applications. The Bioruptor® causes no contamination between samples, gentle processing and has a multiplexing capability. This application note describes a simple, effective and rapid protocol for lysis of bacteria using the Bioruptor®.