200 µm Low Binding Zirconium Beads, 250 gm

Many research papers cite 200 μm low binding zirconium beads for disrupting microbial samples from freshwater and marine environments, as well as toxic and urban environments.  The beads are useful for lysing microorganisms from samples where salinity, organic pollutants, dissolved organic matter and trace metals may interfere with isolation processes.  Additionally, zirconium beads are tougher than silica, less expensive than stainless steel, and inert in most solutions, making them suitable for disrupting bacteria, archaea, algae, and small yeasts. 

These Low Binding Beads are chemically treated so they bind less solutes liberated from homogenized samples, which is particularly useful in applications where non-specific binding can interfere with the analysis, such as in PCR-based assays.  Alternatively, untreated Silica and Zirconium Beads (Zirconium Silicate) have surface chemistries that can bind DNA, RNA, and proteins upon disruption of cells. Both enzyme and PCR-based assays have lower sensitivity when analytes are liberated using untreated beads. Low Binding Beads yield a greater concentration of solutes and provide greater range and linearity, especially in real-time PCR assays. Low Binding Beads are extremely prone to static electric charges.