Isolation and characterization of chromodulin from octopus liver

CHED 888

Margarita Viera, maita58_2001@yahoo.com and C. Michele Davis-McGibony, mdavis@georgiasouthern.edu. Department of Chemistry, Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, GA 30460-8064
Chromodulin (also known as low-molecular-weight chromium-binding substance, LMWCr) has been shown to bind to the insulin receptor in response to insulin and increase the ability of insulin to signal cells that glucose concentrations in the blood are high. This material may be related to adult-onset diabetes, where body tissues become insensitive to insulin. Our laboratory has used octopus liver and an in vitro chromium loading procedure to isolate chromodulin. The results of the isolation procedure, spectroscopic characterization, and a comparison with other chromodulins will be presented.