The Clarifying Reagent, or how to make the analysis of milk and dairy products easier
Difficulties with the analysis of opaque milk and dairy products can be resolved by rendering the sample transparent. This allows direct photometric measurements of the reaction mixtures, and all sample pre-treatment steps become unnecessary. For this, several reagents have been reported in literature. Among them, the ‘Clarifying Reagent’ is mainly described here: its composition is given because it is now released from patenting restrictions. Its main property is a low absorbance between 340 and 800 nm. So it can be used in many chemical and enzymatic colorimetric measurements for estimating the quality of milk and dairy products.
Assay of proteinases of psychrotrophic bacteria in milk using Hide Powder Azure and a simple procedure for clarification of milk
Summary The clarification of milk by addition of solutions of Triton X-100 and EDTA after digestion of added Hide Powder Azure (HPA) was found to provide a simple method of determining the extracellular proteinase activity of Gram-negative psychrotrophic bacteria in pasteurized whole milk. The light absorbance of the clarified HPA digestion product was measured directly, after a brief incubation period, and was stable to storage of samples in diffuse daylight for at least 2 d. Proteinase produced by growth in refrigerated whole milk of as few as 2·5 × 106 cfu ml−1 of Pseudomonas fluorescens AR11 was detected.
Lipoprotein lipase catalyzed hydrolysis of water-soluble p-nitrophenyl esters. Inhibition by apolipoprotein C-II.
Bovine milk lipoprotein lipase (LpL) catalyzes the hydrolysis of the water-soluble esters p-nitrophenyl acetate (PNPA) and p-nitrophenyl butyrate (PNPB). The same protein and same active site are involved in hydrolysis of water-soluble p-nitrophenyl esters and emulsified trioleoylglycerol since (a) trioleoylglycerol hydrolysis and PNPB hydrolysis activities coelute from the heparin-Sepharose affinity column used to purify LpL and (b) LpL-catalyzed hydrolyses of trioleoylglycerol and PNPB are inhibited to equal extents by phenylmethanesulfonyl fluoride. The effect of apolipoprotein C-II (apoC-II) on the LpL-catalyzed hydrolysis of PNPA and PNPB has been determined. ApoC-II inhibits hydrolysis of both esters, with a maximum extent of inhibition of 70-90%. Inhibition of the LpL-catalyzed hydrolysis of PNPB is specific for apoC-II, since apolipoproteins A-I, C-I, and C-III-2 have little effect on this reaction, and is partial noncompetitive in form. KI values for apoC-II inhibition of the LpL-catalyzed hydrolysis of PNPA and PNPB are in the range 0.26-0.83 microM. The effect of apoC-II on the temperature dependences of LpL-catalyzed hydrolysis of both esters and on NaCl inhibition of LpL-catalyzed PNPB hydrolysis is consistent with a change in rate-determining step with LpL and apoC-II interact. These results indicate not only that there is an interaction between apoC-II and LpL in aqueous solution in the absence of a lipid interface but also that this interaction conformationally modulates the active site of the enzyme.