THE OCCURRENCE OF ARTEMOCYANIN IN BRANCHIOPODA (CRUSTACEA)

Artemocyanin, the extracellular hemolymph biliprotein of Artemia, is d emonstrated in the fairy shrimp Streptocephalus, the clam shrimp Lepte stheria and the water flea Daphnia. Artemocyanins can be purified from hemolymph as intact polypeptides (M(r) 170-190,000), but are degraded upon homogenization of the whole animal by partial proteolysis to pol ypeptides with M(r) 102,000 and 85,000. The aminoterminal sequence of the intact artemocyanin polypeptide was determined, but no clear-cut r elationships with arthropod biliproteins or other protein families cou ld be demonstrated.