UV Detection and Avoidance of Protein in Basella alba leaf Mucilage Polysaccharide by differential precipitation

Abstract

Objective: In the aim of refining mucilage polysaccharide extracted from the leaf of Basella alba, extraction and differential precipitation of the protein content was studied. This was attempted by pH adjustment by adding Trichloroacetic acid (TCA) and Hydrochloric acid (HCl). Materials and Methods: The presence of residual protein before and after deproteinization in the polysaccharide solution was detected by UV spectrum analysis. The % polysaccharide, % polysaccharide loss, protein concentration and the deproteinization efficiency were studied as comparative indices to evaluate the precipitation experimental conditions using pH adjustment. Results: The result showed that 10% w/v TCA precipitated over 80% of the protein when the pH of the aqueous polysaccharide solution was 3. Discussion: TCA was proved to be superior to hydrochloric acid as evidenced by the highest deproteinization efficiency (83.3%). The polysaccharides of all the extracted solutions obtained were identified with only slight variations in percentage. The Hcl method excelled over the TCA method in obtaining polysaccharides with little lower percentage of polysaccharide loss (13.94 %). Conclusion: The TCA method will offer a room for deproteinization of polysaccharides if optimization is studied.