Figure 6: In Western blotting, a protein mixture is (a) treated with SDS, a strong denaturing detergent, (b) then separated by electrophoresis in an SDS polyacrylamide gel (SDS-PAGE) which separates the components according to their molecular weight; lower molecular weight components migrate farther than higher molecular weight ones. (c) The gel is removed from the apparatus and applied to a protein-binding sheet of nitrocellulose or nylon and the proteins in the gel are transferred to the sheet by the passage of an electric current. (d) Addition of enzyme-linked antibodies detects the antigen of interest, and (e) the position of the antibodies is visualized by means of a reaction that generates a highly colored insoluble product that is deposited at the site of the reaction.