How does heat shock work in bacterial transformation?

Sourav PanDecember 7, 2024

Answered

Heat shock works by creating temporary pores in the bacterial cell membrane through a rapid increase in temperature. Chemically treated competent cells, typically chilled on ice, are exposed to heat for a short duration (e.g., 42°C for 30–60 seconds). This sudden thermal change disrupts the cell membrane’s fluidity and facilitates the uptake of plasmid DNA. Cooling the cells afterward stabilizes the membrane, trapping the introduced DNA inside. This technique is widely used due to its simplicity and efficiency.

Did this page help you?

Start Asking Questions Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Quiz Leaderboard

1st

Sourav

Score: 90%

Questions: 20

2nd

Priyanka

Score: 90%

Questions: 10

3rd

Nischal

Score: 90%

Questions: 10

4th

Vesnce

Score: 45%

Questions: 20

5th

Hector

Score: 40%

Questions: 10

6th

Hykss

Score: 20%

Questions: 10

Click "Create Mock Test" to start a quiz.
Select categories and the number of questions, then click "Submit" to begin.
After completing the quiz, enter your name and email, then click "Submit" to view your score.
Your score is shown as a percentage (e.g., 5 correct out of 10 is 50%).
The leaderboard displays your name, score percentage, and total questions answered.

Click here to Create Mock Test