Abstract
Studies of polyphosphate (polyP) metabolism in microorganisms have been hampered by the lack of a convenient method for the assay in cell extracts of the activity of polyphosphate kinase (PPK), the enzyme principally responsible for microbial polyP biosynthesis. We report the development of such an assay, based on the well-established metachromatic reaction, with toluidine blue, of the polyP formed during the PPK-catalyzed reaction. The method was successfully used in the characterization of PPK activity in crude extracts of an environmental Burkholderia cepacia isolate. The development of a protocol for the physical recovery of polyP from solution is also reported. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science (USA). All rights reserved.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 294-299 |
| Number of pages | 6 |
| Journal | Analytical Biochemistry |
| Volume | 308 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| Publication status | Published - 15 Oct 2002 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Biochemistry
- Biophysics
- Molecular Biology