Blue Protein?!

[Ross Whetten]

In article <1993Oct26.180345.1 at vcp1.vcp.monash.edu.au>, brendan at vcp1.vcp.monash.edu.au writes:
|>Subject: Blue Protein?!
|>
|>I've been purifying a protein from human plasma and along the way
|>I've collected a fraction containing a blue protein. On a 12% SDS
|>gel this fraction shows three major bands near 20, 30 and 60kDa.
|>Does anybody have any idea what the blue protein is? I have heard
|>that blood does contain one blue protein. All suggestions are
|>welcome.
|>
|>Brendan Duggan
|>
|>Victorian College of Pharmacy
|>Parkville, Melbourne, Australia
|>
|>brendan at vcp.monash.edu.au
|>
The blue protein in human blood is ceruloplasmin, a member of the
larger class of enzymes called blue copper oxidases. Ceruloplasmin is
around 100 kD, as I recall, so the three bands you see may be degradation
products. The other well-studied blue copper oxidases are ascorbate oxidases
from plants and laccases from wood-rotting fungi.



Ross Whetten 
Research Assistant Professor 
Forest Biotechnology Group
North Carolina State University
Raleigh, North Carolina 27695-8008  USA
telephone or fax (919)515-7801
e-mail rosswhet at unity.ncsu.edu