Chemistry of plant genomic dna extraction protocol

Plant species are chemotypically heterogeneous in nature, thus, a single Deoxyribose nuclic acid (DNA) isolation protocol may not be suitable for various plant species. There have been continuous modification and standardization in DNA isolation protocols. Most of the protocols used today for isolation of plant DNA are modified versions of hexadecyltrimethyl-ammonium bromide (CTAB) extraction procedure. Modification is usually done in the concentration of chemicals used during the extraction procedure according to the crop plant and plant part used. Thus, understanding the role of each chemical (e.g. CTAB, NaCl, PVP, ethanol, and isopropanol) used during the DNA extraction procedure will benefit students and researchers to set or modify their protocols for more precisions. A review of the chemicals used in the CTAB method of DNA extraction and their probable functions has been summarized.