Comparison of IEF patterns of sarcoplasmic proteins of fish from North Atlantic and Aegean Sea

Abstract

Identification of processed fish lacking morphological characteristics is of growing importance in the times of increasing global trade and illegal fishery. Protein electrophoresis techniques, like isoelectric focusing (IEF) of water-soluble proteins, are fast and inexpensive tools for identification of raw fishery products. Protein profiles of raw fish or fillet of the same species were found to be remarkably constant. However, it cannot be excluded that protein patterns of fish of the same species from distant stocks may show some variation. The protein profiles of commercially important fish from different fishing grounds were determined by collecting samples of 38 fish species from Aegean Sea and Turkish fish farms and of five species from North Atlantic waters. The raw fillet of the fish was analysed by IEF of water-soluble (sarcoplasmic) proteins. Species-specific protein profiles were obtained suited for identification of raw fish or fillet. When protein patterns and pI values were compared between Mediterranean and North Atlantic fish of the respective species, only minor differences were observed. These differences were related to the intensity of protein bands, but not to the position within the pH gradient of the IEF gel. The pI values (isoelectric points) of the prominent protein bands of the fish were determined to be used as a database.