Gloves
What are they and why do we use them? What types are there?
Disposable gloves are an easy way to insert a sterile layer between your work and your phalanges. Your fingers contain RNAses, DNAses and proteases that may degrade the delicate biological materials that you purify and work with.
Gloves also provide some protection to you while working with dangerous chemicals. Not all gloves provide protection from all chemicals, be sure to review the MSDS of each chemical to ensure you can trust your gloves to keep you safe.
Types:
Size: XS, S, M, L, XL, etc.
Disposable Glove Material;
Nitrile
Latex
Vinyl
Non-Disposable heat-protective gloves - useful for moving around hot things.
When do you use?
General doctrine recommends the use of gloves at all times and during all protocols. Due to the extreme amount of plastic waste created by this approach, I personally prefer to use gloves when either;
My work may be endangered by my bare hands e.g. RNA purification
My bare hands may be endangered by my work e.g. Working with N3/PB/QG buffers.
Gloves can be a safety hazard if they are flammable. Don’t spray flammable gloves with ethanol and then work near an open flame. It’s better to go bare-handed and risk contaminating your work.
How do you use?
Putting gloves on isn’t rocket science, but there is a special technique to removing disposable gloves without letting your bare skin touch the outside. Start by pulling one gloves half-off, then use the hand with the half removed glove to half-remove the other glove. You should now have exposed the inside of the glove sufficiently on both hands to tug the gloves off without touching the outside.