EXTRACTION OF GLYCOSAMINOGLYCAN PEPTIDE FROM BOVINE NASAL CARTILAGE WITH 0.1 M SODIUM-ACETATE

Cartilage is a nonedible byproduct with little saleable value, but it is rich in glycosaminoglycan (GAG), which can be converted to a highly profitable product. In this study. GAG was extracted from bovine cart ilaginous tissues including nasal cartilage, occipital articular carti lage, and temporomandibular joint disk without using the expensive exo genous proteinase commonly used to extract GAG from tissues. The GAG w as extracted with highest yield (approximate to 80% of total tissue ur onic acid) by incubating nasal cartilage in 0.1 M sodium acetate, pH 4 .5, at 37 degrees C. Tissue autolysis was suggested to occur under the incubation condition to release GAG-peptide. The GAG-peptide purified by DEAE ion-exchange chromatography contained approximately 7% protei n, 89% chondroitin sulfate, and 4% keratan sulfate and had no capabili ty to interact with hyaluronic acid. The results suggest that the extr action method with 0.1 M sodium acetate described in this paper is use ful for the preparation of GAG-peptide at a low cost.