2.4 Determination of total protein concentration
When comparing the amount of protein from samples run in different lanes within the same
gel or between gels, it is very important that all the lanes have been loaded with the same total
amount of protein. A two-fold increase in the expression level of a specific protein in one lane
will be completely masked if a comparative lane contains twice the amount of total protein (or
will even appear to be reduced in expression if the comparitor lane contains more than twice
the amount).
Several spectrophotometric methods are routinely used to determine the concentration of
protein in a solution (3). These include measurement of the intrinsic ultraviolet (UV) absorbance
of the protein as well as methods based on a protein-dependent color change, such as the
classic, copper-based Lowry assay (4), the Smith copper/bicinchoninic assay (BCA) (5) and the
Bradford dye assay (6). Although widely used, none of the these procedures are particularly
convenient.
UV absorbance, for example, requires access to a pure protein of a known extinction
coefficient, in a solution free of interfering (UV absorbing) substances. The approximate
concentration of a protein in solution (assuming the use of a cuvette with a path length of 1 cm)
can be estimated by using either of the following equations;
A280 = 1 A1
(mL/cm mg) × [Conc.] (mg/mL) × 1 (cm)
A205 = 31 A1
(mL/cm mg) × [Conc.] (mg/mL) × 1 (cm)
1 A280 represents light absorbed by proteins at 280 nm, primarily a result of the presence of ringed amino acids tyrosine and
tryptophan. A205 represents light absorbed by proteins at 205 nm, primarily the result of peptide bonds between amino
acids.
Different proteins, however, have widely different extinction coefficients at both 280 and
205 nm, and concentration estimates obtained in this way are at best a rough estimate. UV
absorbance requires that the protein solution is free of other UV-absorbing substances, such
as nucleic acids, and that the measurements are carried out using a quartz cuvette.