The gel below illustrates the purification of the RecA protein from E. coli. This gel was loaded from the top. Which statement BEST describes how proteins “run” in an SDS gel?
A.
The proteins are separated primarily by molecular weight—the largest MW proteins are on the bottom, and the smallest are on the top.
B.
The proteins are separated primarily by molecular weight—the smallest MW proteins are on the bottom, and the largest are on the top.
C.
The proteins are separated primarily by charge—the protein with the smallest pI is on the top, and the protein with the largest pI is on the bottom.
D.
The proteins are separated primarily by charge—the protein with the largest pI is on the top, and the protein with the smallest pI is on the bottom.
E.
The proteins are separated primarily by their propensity to precipitate—as electrophoresis progresses, the heat generated by the current denatures proteins faster or slower. The slowest to denature is on the bottom, and the fastest to denature is on the top.