Using fixed volume minipettes with miniPCR bio Learning Labs

Our minipettes are fixed-volume micropipettes that offer the look and feel of “the real thing” while reducing the margin for error that comes with dialing in volumes. Students can build confidence as they practice with minipettes, and carry their skills over to variable micropipettes when they are ready. And at $11 a piece, the price is near unbeatable!

We currently have minipettes in 4 μl, 10 μl, and 20 μl sizes, which means many of our Learning Labs™ are compatible with minipettes with little to no adjustments to the protocol. For example, we recommend the 10 μl minipettes for your students if you will only be performing electrophoresis experiments where loading 10 μl of each sample is standard. Read on to find out how to tweak your favorite labs to work with just minipettes!

Lab	Minipette	Protocol Notes
BioBits Central Dogma Lab (both classroom and @home kits)	4 μl	Use the adjusted protocol here
BioBits Protein Structure and Function Lab	4 μl	Replace all 5 μl volumes in protocol with 4 μl
BioBits Antibiotic Resistance Lab	4 μl	Replace all 3 μl volumes in protocol with 4 μl
Micropipetting @home: Microliter Madness	4 μl 10 μl	Follow protocol as described
All dye electrophoresis labs	10 μl	Follow the labs’ specific protocols as described
All DNA gel electrophoresis labs	10 μl	Load 10 μl of each sample (i.e., if the protocol says to load 12 μl, you can load just 10 μl) Note: this does not apply to the Chopped! Lab, as that protocol contains pipette steps beyond just loading a gel.

Note: If you use fixed volume micropipettes for your students, we usually recommend also getting at least two sizes (2-20 μl and 20-200 μl) of variable volume micropipettes for teacher use and dispensing reagents.

No matter which micropipette you choose, training your students to use a micropipette will teach them an essential biotechnology skill that will serve them well in numerous applications.

Related resources:

All of miniPCR bio’s affordable micropipettes
“Which micropipette is right for me?” blog guide
“Four tools for teaching biotech to beginners” blog guide

Using fixed volume minipettes with miniPCR bio Learning Labs

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