Abstract: An electrophoretic system employing a capillary with at least one end having an electrically conductive coating or layer directly thereon. In order to introduce a plug of sample from a small amount of the sample in a vial, the conductive tip is submersed into the small amount of sample and an electric field is applied at the end by applying the high voltage to the tip in order to electrokinetically inject a plug of the sample. The conductive tip may also be used as a terminal for completing the circuit for applying the high voltage across the capillary column for electrophoresis. The separated components may be collected on a surface or small amount of buffer to reduce sample dilution or mixing of one sample component with a different sample component from the electrophoretic process.

Abstract: Inverse Linkage Oligonucleotides ("ILO") useful in enzymatic process are disclosed. Particularly preferred ILOs are amenable to enzymatic elongation from either, or most preferably, both termini. In a particularly preferred embodiment, each terminus of an ILO has an enzymatically functional 3' group. Accordingly, under appropriate conditions and in the presence of, e.g., dNTPs, enzyme, sample DNA, and ILO comprising a first region complementary to a first region of the sample DNA and a second region complementary to a second, different region of the sample DNA, exponential amplification of the sample DNA can be effectuated.

Abstract: Disclosed herein are capillary columns for capillary electrophoretic analysis of sample constituents. In an embodiment, the columns comprise a bifunctional layer comprising a positively charged amine group adsorbed to the inner wall of the capillary and an active functional group; a gel composition; hydrophilic polymer; and a separation composition capable of being removed from the column, interspersed within the remainder of the column. The disclosed columns are particularly well suited for the analysis of surfactant: proteinaceous material complexes, nucleic acid sequence, and analysis of restriction fragments according to size.

Abstract: A method of positively deciphering a DNA sequence of a sample by comparing data of two electropherograms obtained from separate electrophoresis of products from two complete sequence reactions of the same sample, whereby dideoxynucleotide terminators of different but matched concentration ratios are employed for the two reactions. The sequencing chemistry is chosen to result in terminator-concentration dependent in peak intensity in the electropherograms. By appropriately choosing the matched concentration ratios of the terminators used in the two sequence reactions, ambiguities in the discrimination of the peaks in the result of one sequence reaction can be resolved by comparing the result of the other sequence reaction. The sequence of the sample can therefore be deciphered to a high degree of accuracy. For fluorescence detection of electrophoresis of the sequence reactions, three ddNTP terminators and one fluor are included in the sequencing chemistry of each reaction.