Evaluation of three protein methodologies for marine plankton
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1
Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Marine Ecophysiology Group (EOMAR), Biology Department, Spain
Protein is an important biomass parameter and critical in the enzyme analysis of plankton. When plankton biomass is abundant, obtaining protein samples is not difficult. However, when biomass is a scarce quantity and it needs to be used for many other measurements, obtaining sufficient material for a protein sample is a challenge. If the protein analysis can be made on samples simultaneously prepared for other types of biochemical analyses, this challenge is partially mitigated.
There are several methods for determining total protein content. Among these, some are based on nitrogen content estimation, others on colorimetric measurement after dye binding, and still others on the biuret and Lowry methods. One of the biggest problems, limiting the application of all these methods, is the interference with the buffer compounds used in sample homogenization.
The objective of this research was to determine the optimal method for measuring protein content in plankton samples prepared for enzyme analysis. Here we have tested three commonly used protein determination methods: (1) The Lowry assay modified by Rutter (2) Bradford assay; and (3) Bicinchoninic acid (BCA) assay. We compared the different results from protein standards prepared with Bovine Serum Albumin and from different plankton sizes and species in field samples. Preliminary results show that the best method for plankton samples is the BCA method.
Keywords:
protein,
Specific enzyme activity,
Lowry,
Bicinchoninic acid (BCA),
biomass
Conference:
XIX Iberian Symposium on Marine Biology Studies, Porto, Portugal, 5 Sep - 9 Sep, 2016.
Presentation Type:
Poster Presentation
Topic:
4. FISHERIES, AQUACULTURE AND BIOTECHNOLOGY
Citation:
Martinez
I,
Tames Espinosa
M,
Bondyale Juez
D,
Packard
TT and
Gómez
M
(2016). Evaluation of three protein methodologies for marine plankton.
Front. Mar. Sci.
Conference Abstract:
XIX Iberian Symposium on Marine Biology Studies.
doi: 10.3389/conf.FMARS.2016.05.00214
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Received:
31 May 2016;
Published Online:
03 Sep 2016.
*
Correspondence:
Ms. Ico Martinez, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Marine Ecophysiology Group (EOMAR), Biology Department, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, 35017, Spain, ico.martinez@ulpgc.es