Team: UIUC Illinos/Safety/Database

Ethidium Bromide: the Classic, Carcinogenic Stain

Ethidium Bromide (EtBr) is the classic staining method for imaging gels and viewing bands of DNA. We can see our DNA because EtBr inserts itself into the DNA structure and glows under UV light. However, because EtBr gets entangled in DNA, it is a dangerous carcinogen. This poses a major threat to lab safety, because once EtBr is diluted enough to use, it is clear and untraceable if someone becomes contaminated.
There are other, less carcinogenic options to DNA staining, but EtBr is the standard, cheapest staining method.