HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Interpretive Summary Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Sugawara, G. Articles by Orino, K. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Sugawara, G. Articles by Orino, K.

Short communication: Bovine -casein is a ferritin-binding protein and inhibitory factor of milk ferritin immunoassay

G. Sugawara^*, R. Inoue^*, K. Watanabe^*, H. Ohtsuka and K. Orino^*,1

^* Veterinary Biochemistry Laboratory, and
Large Animal Internal Medicine Laboratory, School of Veterinary Medicine, Kitasato University, Aomori 034-8628, Japan

¹ Corresponding author: orino{at}vmas.kitasato-u.ac.jp

Commercial bovine milk -casein, but not β- and -caseins, bound to bovine spleen ferritin, as determined by an immunoassay for ferritin. In contrast, -casein did not bind to apoferritin. The binding of -casein to bovine spleen ferritin was strongly inhibited by increasing ionic strength by the addition of 0.5 M (NH₄)₂SO₄. The addition of -casein to a known amount of bovine spleen ferritin resulted in significantly lower recovery (78–80%) of added ferritin, although β- and -caseins showed little inhibitory effect in the ferritin immunoassay. These results indicate that bovine -casein is a specific ferritin-binding protein that may inhibit milk ferritin immunoassay.

Key Words: -casein • ferritin • immunoassay • milk