Comparison of the Exopeptidase Activity of Fractions from Crude Extracts of Octopus Octopus vulgaris Cuvier Hepatopancreas Using Different Fractionation Methods

Abstract

This study was performed to identify the optimum fractionation method and conditions to obtain exopeptidase-active fractions from octopus hepatopancreas (HP) crude extracts (CEs) using four techniques: solid ammonium sulfate fractionation, polyethylene glycol (PEG) fractionation, anion exchange chromatography, and gel filtration chromatography. The fractions with the highest total activity toward L-leucine-p-nitroanilide (Leu-pNA) were fraction IV from the ammonium sulfate and PEG fractionation, and fraction II in ion exchange and gel filtration chromatography. The total exoprotease activity of these fractions was highest in fraction IV (4,050.20 U) of ammonium sulfate fractionation, followed by fraction II (3,600.28 U) from gel filtration chromatography, fraction IV (2,861.30 U) from PEG fractionation, and fraction II (2,576.28 U) from ion exchange chromatography. These results suggest that ammonium sulfate fractionation using 60-80% ammonium sulfate was the most efficient method for separating the exoprotease active fractions from CEs of octopus HP.