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Introduction
Introduction
Lipofectamine LTX® Reagent is a proprietary, animal-origin free formulation for the transfection of DNA into eukaryotic cells with low cytotoxicity. This reference provides a recommended procedure to transfect plasmid DNA into HEK 293, human embryonic kidney cells (ATCC No. CRL-1573) using Lipofectamine LTX® Reagent.
Important Guidelines for Transfection
Follow these important guidelines when transfecting HEK 293 cells using Lipofectamine LTX® Reagent:
- Maintain the same seeding conditions between experiments. Use low-passage cells; make sure cells are healthy and greater than 90% viable before transfection.
- Transfection can be performed both in the presence or absence of serum. Test serum-free media for compatibility with Lipofectamine LTX® Reagent.
- We recommend Opti-MEM® I Reduced Serum Medium (Cat. No. 31985-070) to dilute the DNA Lipofectamine LTX® Reagent before complexing.
- Visit www.invitrogen.com/genedelivery or contact Technical Services for other specialized transfection protocols.
- Lipofectamine LTX® Reagent performs well with vector-based RNAi experiments. For siRNA and Stealth RNAi transfections, we recommend Lipofectamine RNAiMAX. Go to www.invitrogen.com/RNAi or contact Technical Service for more information.
Materials Needed
Have the following reagents on hand before beginning:
- HEK 293 cells maintained in Dulbecco's Modified Eagle Medium (DMEM) (Cat. No. 11960-044) medium supplemented with 4 mM L-Glutamine (Cat. No. 25030-081), 10% fetal bovine serum (Cat No. 16000-044). Grow cells at 37o C with 5% CO2.
- Plasmid DNA of interest.
- Lipofectamine LTX® Reagent (store at +4oC until ready to use)
- Opti-MEM® I Reduced Serum Media
- Appropriate tissue culture plates and supplies
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Transfecting HEK 293 Cells
Use this procedure to transfect plasmid DNA into HEK 293 cells in a 24-well format (for other formats, see Scaling Up or Down Transfections, below). All amounts and volumes are given on a per well basis.
TOP- The day before transfection, trypsinize and count the cells. Plate 0.5 -1.25x105 cells per well in 0.5 ml of complete growth medium. Cell density should be 50-80% confluent on the day of transfection.
- (Optional) The day of transfection, remove growth medium from cells and replace with 0.5 ml of complete growth medium.
- For each well of cells to be transfected, dilute 0.5 μg of DNA in 100 μl of Opti-MEM® I Reduced Serum Media without serum.
- For each well of cells, add 0.75-1.75 μl of Lipofectamine LTX® Reagent into the above diluted Opti-MEM®:DNA solution, mix gently and incubate 30 minutes at room temperature to form DNA- Lipofectamine LTX® Reagent complexes.
- After 30 minute incubation, add 100 μl of the DNA- Lipofectamine LTX® Reagent complexes directly to each well containing cells and mix gently by rocking the plate back and forth.
- Complexes do not have to be removed following transfection. Incubate the cells at 37oC in a CO2 incubator for 18-24 hours post-transfection before assaying for transgene expression.
Scaling Up or Down Transfections
| Culture vessel | Surface area per well | Volume plating medium | Cells per well | Volume dilution medium | DNA | Lipofectamine® LTX Reagent |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 96-well | 0.3 cm2 | 100 μl | 2.5 x 104 | 20 μl | 100 ng | 0.15 - 0.35 μl |
| 48-well | 1 cm2 | 200 μl | 5 x 104 | 40 μl | 200 ng | 0.30 - 0.7 μl |
| 24-well | 2 cm2 | 500 μl | 1.25 x 105 | 100 μl | 500 ng | 0.75 - 1.75 μl |
| 12-well | 4 cm2 | 1 ml | 2.5 x 105 | 200 μl | 1 μg | 1.5 - 3.5 μl |
| 6-well | 10 cm2 | 2 ml | 6.25 x 105 | 500 μl | 2.5 μg | 3.75 - 8.75 μl |
25-0989W 17 Nov 2006
