Why should I degas my gel solution for polyacrylamide gels?

Question

In protocols for polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) I often see instructions to degas the gel solution by putting it under vacuum for 10-15 minutes before polymerizing the gel. I usually don't do this, and when I tried it once I couldn't see any difference. So I'm wondering what exactly the degassing is meant to achieve and how big the effect should be.- What effect is degassing the gel solution supposed to have?- How important is degassing to achieve good gels?Any literature that examines the effect of degassing would be appreciated.

Answer 1

It's supposed prevent the occurrence of bubbles in the gel. If you aren't getting bubbles in your gels, then you needn't degas.