Gel chromatography on Sepharose and on Sephadex was used to separate the soluble phenol oxidase in various potato juices into multiple molecular forms ranging from 36,000 to 800,000 daltons. Adjustment of potato juice from physiological pH (ca. 6) to pH 4.5 or to pH 7.8 resulted in the predominance of low-mol.-wt. (less than 150,000 daltons) or high-mol.-wt. (greater than 150,000 daltons) enzyme forms, respectively. This suggests association phenomena of subunits. In potato juice of physiological pH and in potato juice adjusted to pH 4.5, all enzyme forms exhibited both monophenol and o-diphenol oxidase activities (assayed at pH 6.0). In potato juice adjusted to pH 7.8 considerable loss of monophenol oxidase activity (assayed at pH 6.0) occurred. This suggests that o-diphenol oxidase is more alkali-stable than monophenol oxidase. The significance of these findings for enzyme purifications and for the in vivo action of the enzyme is discussed.
31 samples of potato varieties with slow, medium and fast rates of browning were studies. Characteristic enzyme patterns were obtained from polyacrylamide gel electrophoresic of the phenoloxidases of varieties with different discolouration rates. The differences lie mainly in the intensities of the enzyme bands. The qualitative determinaiton of the phenols showed no significant differences. Tyrosine, chlorogenic acid and caffeic acid produce coloured oxidation products; the characteristic colour gradations of in vivo browning were only observed in the presence of tyrosine. It is concluded that the same reactions take place during the discolouration of all the varieties.
Using analytical data from the literature the tyrosine turnover was calculated by a method published previously by us for 72 potato samples with different rates of browning. The samples included 9 varieties grown at three locations in 1969, which were analysed after harvest and after different times of storage at three temperatures. For 58 samples (81%) this calculation led to the same classification of the varieties as did visual observation of the rate of discolouration. It is concluded that enzymic browning of potatoes is correlated rather with tyrosine turnover, which depends on the concentrations of phenol oxidase, tyrosine, chlorogenic acid, and ascorbic acid, than with any single parameter.
The soluble phenol oxidase of various potato juices (adjusted from physiological pH to pH 4.5, 7.0 and 7.8) was separated by gel chromatography into multiple molecular forms. In acid or neutral and alkaline potato juices, low-mol.-wt. (less than 150,000 daltons) or high-mol.-wt. (greater than 150,000 daltons) enzyme forms predominate, respectively. Conversion of the low-mol.-wt. enzyme forms into high-mol.-wt. enzyme forms, and vice versa, was achieved by changing the pH values from acidic to neutral or alkaline pH, and vice versa. This substantiated our previous idea that the enzyme multiplicity arises from association of various subunits. In alkaline potato juice, considerable loss of monophenol oxidase activity (assayed at pH 6.0) occurred. This confirmed our previous findings that o-diphenol oxidase is more alkali-stable than monophenol oxidase.
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