甜菜碱, 无水

Betaine is a reagent that is used in soldering, resin curing fluxes, and organic synthesis. Betaine has been studied in its role in protecting plants from environmental stress and in maintaining osmolarity in mammalian cells. Betaine has been reported to diminish the base pair composition dependence of DNA thermal melting transitions, with a concentration of 5.2 M betaine being the value at which AT and GC base pairs are equally stable and hence subsequently found application in the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The usefulness of betaine in PCR has resulted from its ability to enhance DNA amplification by diminishing the formation of secondary structure in GC-rich DNA regions. A protocol for the production of long-chain cDNAs that uses betaine and trehalose has been published. The permanent positive charge on betaine makes it a target of study for mass spectrometry (MS) analysis by such methods as electrospray ionization (ESI) MS.