

Our Blyscan™ Glycosaminoglycan Kit has been a ‘go-to’ Solution for reliable sGAG and Proteoglycan Analysis for many years! Blyscan utilises a dye-binding approach to quantitatively measure sulfated glycosaminoglycans (sGAG) and proteoglycans in cells, tissues and fluids from a wide range of in-vivo and in-vitro sources.
Colorimetric Detection (656nm) (Endpoint)
Glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) are a type of negatively charged polysaccharide that play crucial roles in various biological processes. They are composed of repeated disaccharide units, typically of N-acetylated or N-sulfated hexosamine paired with a uronic acid (GlcA or IdoA) or galactose. Sulfate groups can also be added to give sulfated GAGs an overall negative charge that influences cell interactions and also enable binding by our Blyscan dye reagent.
Common examples of GAGs include Chondroitin Sulfate, Dermatan Sulfate, Heparin, Heparan Sulfate, and Keratan Sulfate. Note that Hyaluronic Acid is a non-sulfated GAG and cannot be detected by the Blyscan assay. If you need to measure hyaluronic acid instead, we recommend using our Purple-Jelley kit!
GAGs and proteoglycans have essential functions in tissues and organisms, providing biophysical support through scaffolding and maintaining cartilage hydration. They also play a vital role in biochemical processes such as cell adhesion and signalling.
Blyscan is an Old English word meaning ‘to shine’ and from which the word ‘blush’, (blushing), may have been derived. This was an appropriate choice as the Blyscan Assay contains a blue dye which ‘blushes’ bright pink when it binds to sulphated glycosaminoglycans!
Step 1. Blyscan dye reagent contains DMMB dye in an optimised buffer. Addition of Dye reagent to samples containing sGAG results in the formation of a dye/sGAG complex due to a charge interaction between dye and GAG sulfate groups.
Step 2. Over a 30 minute incubation Dye-labelled sGAGs precipitate out of solution and are collected by centrifugation. Following removal of unbound dye, the remaining bound dye is released from the complex by
addition of dye dissociation reagent. Released dye is quantified spectrophotometrically.
Step 3. The sGAG content of unknown samples may be quantified by comparison against a calibration curve prepared using a standard of purified Chondroitin-4-sulfate supplied with the kit.
A list of suggested sample types can be found under the ‘Assay Specification‘ tab.
The Blyscan Dye reagent is formulated to miminise binding to other charged sample components such as nucleic acids, a problem with some older dye-based sGAG assays.
2.5 – 50µg/ml
2.5µg/ml
Colorimetric Detection (656nm) (Endpoint)
110 in total (allows a maximum of 48 samples to be run in duplicate alongside a standard curve).
In-vivo: Solid samples, including cartilage, bone, connective tissue, tumour tissue
In-vivo: Liquid samples, including fluids such as urine, amniotic or synovial fluid.
In-vitro: Solid samples, such as deposited ECM on 2D/3D culture surfaces.by enzymatic treatment
In-vivo: Liquid samples, Culture media during 2D/3D cell culture.
The assay requires that sulfated polysaccahrides or sGAGs are in a soluble form. A preliminary enzymatic extraction step is required for solid samples (enzyme not supplied with kit).
The assay is not suitable for use with samples containing alginates or that comprise degraded sulfated disaccharide fragments.
This kit is designed for research use only. Not for use in diagnostic procedures.
Kit requires access to a centrifuge, as well as a spectrophotometer/colorimeter capable of absorbance detection at 656nm.
Specific sample preparation protocols may require customer to provide further reagents, consult assay manual for further information.
1. Blyscan Dye Reagent (1x110ml)
2.sGAG Reference Standard (1x5ml, 100µg/ml Bovine tracheal chondroitin 4-sulfate)
3. Dissociation Reagent (1x110ml)
4. Sodium Nitrite (1x15ml)
5. Acetic Acid (1x15ml)
6. Ammonium Sulfamate (1x15ml)
7. 1.5ml micro-centrifuge tubes for dye-labelling reaction.
8. Assay kit manual
NB: Additional reagents may be required for sample preparation prior to assay. Consult manual or contact us for further details.
Our Blyscan™ Glycosaminoglycan Kit has been a ‘go-to’ Solution for reliable sGAG and Proteoglycan Analysis for many years! Blyscan utilises a dye-binding approach to quantitatively measure sulfated glycosaminoglycans (sGAG) and proteoglycans in cells, tissues and fluids from a wide range of in-vivo and in-vitro sources.
Colorimetric Detection (656nm) (Endpoin
The Urine Exosome Purification Kits provide a fast, reliable and convenient method to purify and enrich for pure intact exosomes from different urine sample volumes ranging from 250 µL to 30 mL. These kits also allow for the purification of intact extracellular vesicles (EVs) from different urine sample volumes, and these EVs are ready for any downstream application. The purification is based on Norgen’s proprietary resin.
These kits provide a clear advantage over other available methods since they do not require any special instrumentation, ultracentrifugation, precipitation reagents or any protease treatments. More importantly, the purified exosomes will not be contaminated with any other RNA-binding proteins that may contaminate your exosomal RNA, which is essential if studying exosomal RNA gene expression.
NanoSight® Analysis
Exosomes enriched with Norgen’s Urine Exosome Purification Kits can be analyzed using NanoSight® for assessing the approximate exosome size range and concentration.
Exosomal RNA Analysis
Exosomal RNA can be isolated using Norgen’s Exosomal RNA Isolation Kit from exosomes enriched using Norgen’s Urine Exosome Purification Kits for gene expression analysis using RT-qPCR, microarray or NGS and for Biomarker discovery.
Figure 1 / 2
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| Kit Specifications | |
| Urine Input (Cat. 57700) | 250 μL – 1 mL |
| Urine Input (Cat. 57800) | 2 mL – 10 mL |
| Urine Input (Cat. 57900) | 11 mL – 30 mL |
| Size of Exosomes Purified | 40 nm – 150 nm |
| Elution Volume | Variable depending on the urine input volume |
| Time to Complete 10 Purifications | 15 – 30 minutes |
Storage Conditions and Product Stability
All buffers should be kept tightly sealed and stored at room temperature. These kits are stable for 2 years after the date of shipment.
Important Note
Urine samples stored at -70°C, -20°C or at 4°C will develop some precipitation due to the aggregation of some of the highly abundant proteins in urine. Eliminating these precipitates using centrifugation or filtration may cause the loss of exosomes. Furthermore, these precipitates may affect the quality of the purified nucleic acid. We recommend the use of Norgen’s Urine Preservative when collecting urine samples, which is designed for the preservation of nucleic acids and proteins in fresh urine samples at ambient temperatures. The components of the Urine Preservative allow samples to be stored for over 2 years at room temperature with no detected degradation of urine DNA, RNA or proteins. Norgen’s Urine Preservative is available as a liquid format in Norgen’s Urine Preservative Single Dose Ampules, as well as in a dried format in Norgen’s Urine Collection and Preservation Tubes.
| Component | Cat. 57700 (50 preps) | Cat. 57800 (25 preps) | Cat. 57900 (15 preps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Slurry E | 12.5 mL | 12.5 mL | 12.5 mL |
| ExoC Buffer | 8 mL | 30 mL | 50 mL |
| ExoR Buffer | 12 mL | 12 mL | 12 mL |
| Mini Filter Spin Columns inserted into 2 mL tubes | 50 | 25 | 15 |
| Product Insert | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Cryptococcus neoformans is an encapsulated yeast. Infection with C. neoformans is known as cryptococcosis and is the cause of the most common life-threatening meningitis in patients with weakened immune systems, particularly in advanced HIV/AIDS. C. neoformans is commonly found in soil throughout the world. Human infection of C. neoformans occurs via inhalation of aerosolized spores. From the lungs, C. neoformans is spread hematogenously to the Central Nervous System (CNS), resulting in meningoencephalitis. Although the availability of antiretroviral therapy in the developed world has reduced the incidents of cryptococcosis, it is still a major problem in developing countries and is one of the leading causes of death in patients with HIV/AIDS. In fact, one of the major challenges in treating cryptococcosis is that many patients with cryptococcal CNS disease are asymptomatic in terms of cryptococcal pneumonia, making it difficult for early detection.
Cryptococcus neoformans TaqMan PCR Kit, 100 reactions
Cryptococcus neoformans TaqMan PCR Probe/Primer Set and Controls, 100 reactions
Figure 1 / 3
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Storage Conditions and Product Stability
All kit components can be stored for 2 years after the date of production without showing any reduction in performance.
All kit components should be stored at -20°C upon arrival. Repeated thawing and freezing (> 2 x) of the Master Mix and Positive Control should be avoided, as this may affect the performance of the assay. If the reagents are to be used only intermittently, they should be frozen in aliquots.
| Component | Cat. TM42750 (100 preps) | Cat. TM42710 (100 preps) |
|---|---|---|
| MDx TaqMan 2X PCR Master Mix | 2 x 700 μL | – |
| Cryptococcus neoformans Primer & Probe Mix | 280 μL | 280 μL |
| Cryptococcus neoformans Positive Control | 150 μL | 150 μL |
| Nuclease-Free Water (Negative Control) | 1.25 mL | 1.25 mL |
| Product Insert | 1 | 1 |