What is the small band below my fragment of interest on an agarose gel after DNA cleanup using QIAquick?

Occasionally, DNA fragments eluted from the silica matrix of QIAquick, MinElute or QIAEX II Kits will contain denatured single-stranded DNA (ssDNA), appearing as a smaller band on an analytical gel. Under certain conditions, chaotropic agents (present in all silica-based DNA purification methods) can denature DNA fragments. This is a rare event that may be influenced by sequence characteristics such as the presence of inverted repeats or A–T-rich stretches.

Because salt and buffering agents promote renaturation of DNA strands, the following tips are recommended:

• use the eluted DNA to prepare your downstream enzymatic reaction, but omit the enzyme. Incubate the reaction mix at 95°C for 2 minutes to reanneal the ssDNA, and allow the tube to cool slowly to room temperature before adding the enzyme and proceeding
• alternatively, the DNA can be eluted from the silica-gel membrane or resin in 10 mM Tris buffer containing 10 mM NaCl. However, the salt concentration of the eluate must then be taken into consideration in downstream applications.