Lesson plan
EGTA
EGTA (ethylene glycol-bis(β-aminoethyl ether)-N,N,N′,N′-tetraacetic acid), also known as egtazic acid (INN, USAN), is an aminopolycarboxylic acid, a chelating agent. It is a white solid that is related to the better known EDTA. Compared to EDTA, it has a lower affinity for magnesium, making it more selective for calcium ions. It is useful in buffer solutions that resemble the environment in living cells where calcium ions are usually at least a thousandfold less concentrated than magnesium. The pK a for binding of calcium ions by tetrabasic EGTA is 11.00, but the protonated forms do not significantly contribute to binding, so at pH 7, the apparent pK a becomes 6.91. See Qin et al. for an example of a pK a calculation. EGTA has also been used experimentally for the treatment of animals with cerium poisoning and for the separation of thorium from the mineral monazite. EGTA is used as a compound in elution buffer in the protein purification technique known as tandem affinity purification, in which recombinant fusion proteins are bound to calmodulin beads and eluted out by adding EGTA. EGTA is often employed in dentistry and endodontics for the removal of the smear layer.
Article summary
EGTA (ethylene glycol-bis(β-aminoethyl ether)-N,N,N′,N′-tetraacetic acid), also known as egtazic acid (INN, USAN), is an aminopolycarboxylic acid, a chelating agent. It is a white solid that is related to the better known EDTA. Compared to EDTA, it has a lower affinity for magnesium, making it more selective for calcium ions. It is useful in buffer solutions that resemble the environment in living cells where calcium ions are usually at least a thousandfold less concentrated than magnesium. The pK a for binding of calcium ions by tetrabasic EGTA is 11.00, but the protonated forms do not significantly contribute to binding, so at pH 7, the apparent pK a becomes 6.91. See Qin et al. for an example of a pK a calculation. EGTA has also been used experimentally for the treatment of animals with cerium poisoning and for the separation of thorium from the mineral monazite. EGTA is used as a compound in elution buffer in the protein purification technique known as tandem affinity purification, in which recombinant fusion proteins are bound to calmodulin beads and eluted out by adding EGTA. EGTA is often employed in dentistry and endodontics for the removal of the smear layer.
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Discussion questions
- Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
- Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
- If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?
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Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.