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Mercapto Ethanol is an organosulfur compound containing both a thiol group and a hydroxyl group and is widely used as a reducing agent and stabilizer in laboratory and industrial processes.
Mercapto Ethanol is commonly used to reduce disulfide bonds in proteins, prevent oxidation of thiol-containing compounds, and control redox conditions in biochemical and chemical systems.
Mercapto Ethanol is valued for strong reducing power, high water miscibility, and effectiveness at low concentrations, but it is also known for strong odor and the need for careful handling.
CAS Number: 60-24-2
EC Number: 200-535-2
Molecular Formula: C2H6OS
Molecular Weight: 78.13 g/mol
Synonyms: Mercapto Ethanol, 2-Mercaptoethanol, β-Mercaptoethanol, BME, 2-Hydroxyethanethiol, Thioethylene Glycol, MEA (common confusion), Beta-Mercaptoethanol, 2-ME, Mercaptoethanol Reagent, Mercapto Ethanol Reducing Agent, βME, 2-Mercaptoethanol Solution, Mercapto Ethanol, 2-Mercaptoethanol, Beta-Mercaptoethanol, β-Mercaptoethanol, 2-ME, BME, Thioethylene Glycol, Thioglycol, 2-Hydroxyethanethiol, β-Hydroxyethyl Mercaptan, Hydroxyethyl Mercaptan, Ethylene Mercaptan Alcohol, Ethanol, 2-mercapto-, Ethanol, beta-mercapto-, 2-Mercaptoethanol Reagent, 2-Mercaptoethanol Laboratory Grade, 2-Mercaptoethanol Molecular Biology Grade, 2-Mercaptoethanol BioReagent, 2-Mercaptoethanol Cell Culture Grade, 2-Mercaptoethanol Electrophoresis Grade, 2-Mercaptoethanol Protein Grade, 2-Mercaptoethanol Reducing Agent, 2-Mercaptoethanol Thiol Reagent, 2-Mercaptoethanol Sulfhydryl Reagent, 2-Mercaptoethanol Disulfide Reducer, 2-Mercaptoethanol Denaturing Agent, 2-Mercaptoethanol Lysis Buffer Additive, 2-Mercaptoethanol Sample Buffer Additive, 2-Mercaptoethanol SDS-PAGE Additive, 2-Mercaptoethanol RNA Grade, 2-Mercaptoethanol DNA Grade, 2-Mercaptoethanol Ultra Pure, 2-Mercaptoethanol Purified, 2-Mercaptoethanol High Purity, 2-Mercaptoethanol 99%, 2-Mercaptoethanol ACS Grade, 2-Mercaptoethanol Analytical Grade, 2-Mercaptoethanol Reagent Grade, 2-Mercaptoethanol Technical Grade, 2-Mercaptoethanol Industrial Grade, 2-Mercaptoethanol Synthesis Grade, 2-Mercaptoethanol Chemical Intermediate, 2-Mercaptoethanol Fine Chemical, 2-Mercaptoethanol Specialty Chemical, 2-Mercaptoethanol Thiol Alcohol, 2-Mercaptoethanol Sulfur Alcohol, 2-Mercaptoethanol SH-Reagent, 2-Mercaptoethanol Reductant, 2-Mercaptoethanol Cleaving Agent, 2-Mercaptoethanol Protein Reducer, 2-Mercaptoethanol Disulfide Cleaver, 2-Mercaptoethanol Volatile Thiol, 2-Mercaptoethanol Organic Thiol, 2-Mercaptoethanol Aliphatic Thiol, 2-Mercaptoethanol Liquid Thiol
APPLICATIONS
Mercapto Ethanol is used in protein sample preparation to reduce disulfide bonds prior to electrophoresis.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in SDS-PAGE sample buffers to maintain proteins in a reduced state during denaturation.
Mercapto Ethanol is incorporated into Western blot workflows to improve protein unfolding and migration consistency.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in cell lysis buffers to protect protein thiols and reduce oxidative crosslinking during extraction.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in enzyme preparations to maintain catalytic activity of thiol-sensitive enzymes.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in protein purification to prevent disulfide-linked aggregation in sensitive proteins.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in RNA and DNA workflows to reduce oxidative damage and protect sensitive reagents in some protocols.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in reverse transcription mixes where reducing conditions can improve enzyme stability in compatible systems.
Mercapto Ethanol is incorporated into nucleic acid extraction buffers to help stabilize certain components during processing.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in biochemistry research to maintain reduced conditions in protein folding and refolding experiments.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in structural biology to prevent disulfide scrambling during sample handling.
Mercapto Ethanol is applied in redox buffer systems to tune reduction potential in controlled experiments.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in pharmaceutical research during development of protein and peptide analytical methods.
Mercapto Ethanol is incorporated into analytical sample prep to reduce disulfide-linked impurities for characterization.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in quality control methods where consistent reduction improves reproducibility.
Mercapto Ethanol is used as a reducing agent in organic synthesis where thiol-based reduction is suitable.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in chemical manufacturing to maintain reducing conditions during selected reaction sequences.
Mercapto Ethanol is applied in processes where suppression of oxidation improves yield or color stability.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in polymer chemistry as a chain transfer agent in radical polymerization to control molecular weight.
Mercapto Ethanol is incorporated into polymerization systems where thiol transfer helps manage branching and gel formation.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in specialty polymer synthesis where thiol functionality is introduced into polymer chains.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in textile and hair processing chemistry as a reducing agent in disulfide bond modification contexts.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in specialty formulations where reduction of sulfur crosslinks is part of the functional mechanism.
Mercapto Ethanol is incorporated into process solutions where controlled thiol chemistry is required.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in surface chemistry to functionalize metals and nanoparticles through thiol interactions.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in nanomaterials synthesis to control particle growth and stabilize surfaces in compatible systems.
Mercapto Ethanol is applied in colloidal preparations where thiol binding improves stability and dispersion.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in analytical chemistry as a reducing agent for sample stabilization and method development.
Mercapto Ethanol is incorporated into calibration and reference systems where thiol-based reduction is required.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in laboratory settings where strong reduction at low concentration improves workflow reliability.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in biotechnology manufacturing where controlled redox conditions protect sensitive biomolecules.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in fermentation and downstream processing to reduce oxidation of thiol-sensitive products in compatible processes.
Mercapto Ethanol is used where rapid reduction and water miscibility simplify dosing and process control.
Mercapto Ethanol is used as a reducing agent in protein biochemistry.
Mercapto Ethanol breaks disulfide bonds to denature proteins for SDS-PAGE analysis.
Mercapto Ethanol improves band resolution by maintaining proteins in a reduced state.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in Western blot sample preparation.
Mercapto Ethanol reduces disulfide-linked protein complexes prior to electrophoresis.
Mercapto Ethanol helps standardize migration behavior across samples.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in protein purification workflows.
Mercapto Ethanol prevents oxidative disulfide formation during chromatography.
Mercapto Ethanol helps maintain enzyme activity for thiol-sensitive proteins.
Mercapto Ethanol is applied in cell lysis buffers for proteomic studies.
Mercapto Ethanol protects cysteine residues from oxidation during extraction.
Mercapto Ethanol supports more accurate downstream mass spectrometry profiling.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in nucleic acid extraction protocols.
Mercapto Ethanol helps inactivate RNases by reducing disulfide bonds in proteins.
Mercapto Ethanol improves RNA integrity during isolation from tissues.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in RT-PCR and RNA handling environments.
Mercapto Ethanol supports preparation of RNase-free reagents and work surfaces.
Mercapto Ethanol helps maintain consistent RNA yields in sensitive workflows.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in mammalian cell culture to support certain cell types.
Mercapto Ethanol is added at low concentrations to reduce oxidative stress in culture media.
Mercapto Ethanol is commonly used in lymphocyte and hybridoma culture protocols.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in immunology laboratories for B-cell and T-cell culture experiments.
Mercapto Ethanol supports improved viability and function of specific immune cell populations.
Mercapto Ethanol helps maintain reducing conditions that favor certain signaling pathways.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in bacterial culture and recombinant protein expression experiments.
Mercapto Ethanol can be included to help maintain reduced environments in specific assays.
Mercapto Ethanol supports consistent behavior of thiol-sensitive reporters.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in refolding protocols for disulfide-containing proteins.
Mercapto Ethanol helps control redox balance during refolding optimization.
Mercapto Ethanol supports reduction steps before oxidative folding with defined redox pairs.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in enzymology studies involving thiol-dependent enzymes.
Mercapto Ethanol maintains active-site cysteines in their reduced, active form.
Mercapto Ethanol helps prevent time-dependent loss of activity due to oxidation.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in preparation of reducing buffers for structural biology.
Mercapto Ethanol supports crystallography and NMR sample stability for cysteine-rich proteins.
Mercapto Ethanol helps minimize aggregation caused by disulfide crosslinking.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in protein–protein interaction assays where disulfide artifacts must be avoided.
Mercapto Ethanol reduces unintended covalent linking between proteins.
Mercapto Ethanol supports more reliable binding measurements in vitro.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in antibody fragmentation and modification workflows.
Mercapto Ethanol reduces disulfide bonds to generate Fab or other fragments under controlled conditions.
Mercapto Ethanol supports selective reduction steps prior to conjugation.
Mercapto Ethanol is applied in bioconjugation chemistry to prepare thiol-reactive substrates.
Mercapto Ethanol can be used to reduce disulfide-protected thiols before labeling.
Mercapto Ethanol supports efficient coupling reactions by increasing free thiol availability.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in polymer chemistry as a chain transfer agent in radical polymerization.
Mercapto Ethanol helps control molecular weight by terminating growing chains.
Mercapto Ethanol supports production of polymers with targeted viscosity and performance.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in synthesis of thiol-containing intermediates in fine chemistry.
Mercapto Ethanol acts as a nucleophile in substitution reactions for sulfur introduction.
Mercapto Ethanol supports preparation of mercaptoethyl derivatives and functional linkers.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in surface chemistry to introduce thiol functionality.
Mercapto Ethanol enables thiol-based anchoring to certain metal surfaces in laboratory studies.
Mercapto Ethanol supports formation of sulfur-containing coatings and modifications.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in nanoparticle research for stabilizing and functionalizing materials.
Mercapto Ethanol can bind to metal nanoparticles through sulfur interactions.
Mercapto Ethanol supports ligand exchange and surface passivation experiments.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in electrochemistry experiments involving thiols and redox-active sulfur species.
Mercapto Ethanol supports studies of adsorption and electron transfer on electrodes.
Mercapto Ethanol helps probe surface reactivity in controlled lab cells.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in quality control laboratories as a reducing reagent in specific analytical methods.
Mercapto Ethanol supports preparation of reduced standards for calibration.
Mercapto Ethanol helps ensure consistent chemical state during analysis.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in diagnostic reagent development for assays that require controlled redox conditions.
Mercapto Ethanol supports stability of thiol-sensitive components in formulations.
Mercapto Ethanol helps maintain predictable assay performance over time.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in microbiology for studies of oxidative stress responses.
Mercapto Ethanol can modulate redox conditions to test stress tolerance mechanisms.
Mercapto Ethanol supports controlled evaluation of redox-sensitive gene expression.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in pharmaceutical research for screening cysteine-reactive compounds.
Mercapto Ethanol helps verify specificity by competing for thiol-reactive binding sites.
Mercapto Ethanol supports mechanistic studies of electrophile–thiol interactions.
Mercapto Ethanol is used in chemical safety training laboratories as an example of volatile thiol reagents.
Mercapto Ethanol supports instruction on fume hood technique and odor control practices.
Mercapto Ethanol helps demonstrate the importance of proper waste handling for sulfur compounds.
DESCRIPTION
Mercapto Ethanol is typically a clear, colorless liquid with a very strong, unpleasant sulfur-like odor.
Mercapto Ethanol is miscible with water and many organic solvents, making it easy to incorporate into aqueous buffers and mixed-solvent systems.
Mercapto Ethanol is a thiol-based reducing agent that reacts readily with oxidants and can reduce disulfide bonds in proteins and other molecules.
Mercapto Ethanol is commonly used at low concentrations because small amounts provide effective reduction in many laboratory protocols.
Mercapto Ethanol can be hazardous due to toxicity, strong odor, and potential for irritation, so good ventilation and careful handling are essential.
Mercapto Ethanol should be stored tightly closed to limit odor release and to prevent oxidation during storage.
Mercapto Ethanol can oxidize over time to form disulfides, which can reduce reducing strength if not properly stored.
Mercapto Ethanol should be kept away from strong oxidizers and sources of ignition, and exposure should be minimized.
Mercapto Ethanol is typically handled in fume hoods and with odor control measures in professional environments.
Mercapto Ethanol is a small organosulfur compound also known as 2-mercaptoethanol.
Mercapto Ethanol is typically a clear, colorless liquid at room temperature.
Mercapto Ethanol has a strong, characteristic thiol odor that can be noticeable at very low levels.
Mercapto Ethanol is miscible with water and many polar organic solvents.
Mercapto Ethanol functions primarily as a reducing agent by donating electrons to disulfide bonds.
Mercapto Ethanol converts disulfide bridges into free thiol groups in proteins and other molecules.
Mercapto Ethanol is widely used in laboratories because it provides reliable reduction under mild conditions.
Mercapto Ethanol is often used in sample buffers for SDS-PAGE and related electrophoretic methods.
Mercapto Ethanol helps keep cysteine residues in a reduced state during handling and storage.
Mercapto Ethanol is volatile and should be handled in a well-ventilated area or fume hood.
Mercapto Ethanol can cause irritation to eyes, skin, and respiratory tract depending on exposure.
Mercapto Ethanol should be handled with appropriate PPE such as gloves, goggles, and lab coats.
Mercapto Ethanol is combustible and should be kept away from ignition sources.
Mercapto Ethanol should be stored tightly closed to minimize vapor release and oxidation.
Mercapto Ethanol storage is typically recommended in cool conditions away from strong oxidizers.
Mercapto Ethanol can react with oxidizing agents and may form disulfides upon exposure to air over time.
Mercapto Ethanol can also react with certain metals and metal salts under specific conditions.
Mercapto Ethanol compatibility should be evaluated when used in complex formulations or processes.
Mercapto Ethanol waste should be collected and disposed of as hazardous chemical waste.
Mercapto Ethanol spills require prompt containment due to odor and vapor concerns.
Mercapto Ethanol is valued for strong reducing performance despite requiring careful handling.
PROPERTIES
Chemical Formula: C2H6OS
Molecular Weight: 78.13 g/mol
Common Name: Mercapto Ethanol (2-Mercaptoethanol)
Chemical Nature: Thiol alcohol (organosulfur reducing agent)
Appearance: Clear, colorless liquid
Odor: Strong, pungent sulfur odor
Solubility: Miscible with water; soluble in many organic solvents
Boiling Point: ~157°C (typical)
Melting Point: ~ -100°C (typical)
Density: ~1.11–1.12 g/cm³ (typical)
Flash Point: ~70°C (typical; grade dependent)
Vapor Pressure: Low to moderate (temperature dependent)
Stability: Oxidizes slowly in air; avoid strong oxidizers and prolonged air exposure
Storage Temperature: 15–25°C, tightly closed, well ventilated, protected from light
Shelf Life: Typically 12–24 months in original sealed packaging (supplier dependent)
FIRST AID
Inhalation:
Move to fresh air immediately if vapors are inhaled.
Seek medical attention if headache, dizziness, nausea, or respiratory irritation occurs.
Keep the person at rest and monitor breathing.
Skin Contact:
Remove contaminated clothing and rinse skin with plenty of water.
Wash with soap and water after thorough rinsing.
Seek medical attention if irritation persists or if exposure was significant.
Eye Contact:
Rinse cautiously with water for several minutes and continue rinsing.
Remove contact lenses if present and easy to do, then continue rinsing.
Seek medical attention if pain, redness, or visual disturbance persists.
Ingestion:
Rinse mouth with water and do not induce vomiting.
Never give anything by mouth to an unconscious person.
Seek immediate medical attention and show product information if available.
Note to Physicians:
Treat symptomatically and supportively.
Consider systemic toxicity risk depending on exposure level.
Monitor respiratory and neurological symptoms based on route of exposure.
HANDLING AND STORAGE
Handling:
Use appropriate PPE including chemical-resistant gloves, safety goggles, and protective clothing.
Handle in a fume hood or well-ventilated area due to strong odor and vapor exposure risk.
Avoid skin contact and avoid breathing vapors, and keep containers closed when not in use.
Ventilation:
Use local exhaust ventilation, especially during dispensing and mixing.
Avoid open handling in small rooms because odor can spread quickly and persist.
Use closed transfer systems when feasible for larger-scale operations.
Storage:
Store in tightly closed containers in a cool, dry, well-ventilated area.
Keep away from strong oxidizers, acids, and sources of ignition.
Store secondary containment to prevent odor spread and manage leaks.
Spill and Leak Procedures:
Ventilate the area and evacuate unnecessary personnel due to strong odor.
Absorb with inert material and collect into suitable sealed containers.
Wash the area with detergent and water while preventing slip hazards and dispose according to local regulations.
Handling Precautions:
Use odor control measures and keep waste containers sealed because Mercapto Ethanol odor is persistent.
Avoid contamination and minimize air exposure to preserve reducing strength.
Rotate stock using FIFO practices and follow site-specific chemical hygiene procedures.
