K. Aizawa et al., ENHANCED RECOVERY OF CHLOROPHYLL AND CAROTENOIDS WITH DEXTRAN-POLYACRYLAMIDE GEL-ELECTROPHORESIS, Analytical sciences, 13, 1997, pp. 253-256
Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) is a widely used method for
separating and analyzing chlorophyll/carotenoid binding-proteins. Howe
ver, extraction of pigments from the proteins in the gel using organic
solvents is inefficient. We modified the gel composition by adding va
rious hydrophilic water-soluble polymers to the acrylamide before poly
merization. The inclusion of 3% dextran T500 produced a gel with much
more elasticity and greatly improved both the speed and efficiency of
pigment extraction. In 30 min, extraction of pigments was completed wh
ether in 80% acetone or in 95% N,N-dimethylformamide. More than 90% of
the chlorophyll and carotenoid applied to the ge was recovered by sol
vent extraction. The current method is advantageous for separation and
quantitative analysis of pigments associated with proteins.