Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised May 27, 2026

MOPS

MOPS (3-(N-morpholino)propanesulfonic acid) is a buffer introduced in the 1960s, one of the twenty Good's buffers. It is a structural analog to MES, and like MES, its structure contains a morpholine ring. HEPES is a similar pH buffering compound that contains a piperazine ring. With a pKa of 7.20, MOPS is an excellent buffer for many biological systems at near-neutral pH.

Last revised
May 27, 2026
Read time
≈ 2 min
Length
360 w
Citations
4
Source
Wikipedia ↗
MOPS
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Names
Preferred IUPAC name
3-(Morpholin-4-yl)propane-1-sulfonic acid
Other names
3-(N-Morpholino)propanesulfonic acid,
3-Morpholinopropanesulfonic acid,
3-N-Morpholino propansulfonic acid,
4-Morpholinepropanesulfonic acid
Identifiers
3D model (JSmol)
ChemSpider
ECHA InfoCard 100.013.162
UNII
  • InChI=1S/C7H15NO4S/c9-13(10,11)7-1-2-8-3-5-12-6-4-8/h1-7H2,(H,9,10,11) ☒N
    Key: DVLFYONBTKHTER-UHFFFAOYSA-N ☒N
  • InChI=1/C7H15NO4S/c9-13(10,11)7-1-2-8-3-5-12-6-4-8/h1-7H2,(H,9,10,11)
    Key: DVLFYONBTKHTER-UHFFFAOYAN
  • C1COCCN1CCCS(=O)(=O)O
Properties
C7H15NO4S
Molar mass 209.26 g·mol−1
Hazards
GHS labelling:
GHS07: Exclamation mark
Warning
H315, H319, H335
P261, P264, P271, P280, P302+P352, P304+P340, P305+P351+P338, P312, P321, P332+P313, P337+P313, P362, P403+P233, P405, P501
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa).
☒N verify (what is checkY☒N ?)

MOPS (3-(N-morpholino)propanesulfonic acid) is a buffer introduced in the 1960s, one of the twenty Good's buffers. It is a structural analog to MES,1 and like MES, its structure contains a morpholine ring. HEPES is a similar pH buffering compound that contains a piperazine ring. With a pKa of 7.20, MOPS is an excellent buffer for many biological systems at near-neutral pH.

Applications

MOPS is frequently used as a buffering agent in biology and biochemistry. It has been tested and recommended for polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis.2 Usage above 20 mM in mammalian cell culture work is not recommended.3 MOPS buffer solutions become discolored (yellow) over time, but reportedly slight discoloration does not significantly affect the buffering characteristics.4

See also

See also

References

References

  1. Good, Norman E.; Winget, G. Douglas; Winter, Wilhelmina; Connolly, Thomas N.; Izawa, Seikichi; Singh, Raizada M. M. (1966). "Hydrogen Ion Buffers for Biological Research". Biochemistry. 5 (2): 467–77. doi:10.1021/bi00866a011. PMID 5942950.
  2. Thomas, J; Hodes, ME (1981). "A new discontinuous buffer system for the electrophoresis of cationic proteins at near-neutral pH". Analytical Biochemistry. 118 (1): 194–6. doi:10.1016/0003-2697(81)90178-0. PMID 6278979.
  3. Eagle, H. (1971). "Buffer Combinations for Mammalian Cell Culture". Science. 174 (4008): 500–3. Bibcode:1971Sci...174..500E. doi:10.1126/science.174.4008.500. PMID 5110427. S2CID 29876583.
  4. "Boston BioProducts - MOPS Buffer (1 M, pH 7.4)".
External links