Heat lability of DEPC

[Tracy Aquilla]

In Article <4hpguh$dqi at sci3.sri.ucl.ac.be>, "P. Mertens"
<mertens at toxi.ucl.ac.be> wrote:
>
>>Some members of my laboratory have been using autoclaved
>>DEPC-treated water for most applications including DNA work.
>>I expressed concern that the DEPC might inhibit RNase A
>>used, for example, to remove RNA from plasmid minipreps.
>>However, the laboratory opinion was that the DEPC would be
>>destroyed by autoclaving and so would not be a problem. Can
>>anyone set my mind at rest on this issue?
>
>Most of the protocols dealing with RNA claims that DEPC is inactivated by 
>autoclaving or heating 15 minutes at 100%C!

If one examines the chemical structure of DEPC, it appears that it should be
rapidly hydrolyzed upon addition to water!
    Tracy