Reliable quantification of R-phycoerythrin from red algal crude extracts

R-phycoerythrin is a fluorescent red protein-pigment complex present in red algae. It belongs to the light-harvesting phycobiliprotein family with phycocyanin and allophycocyanin, which together make up the phycobilisome. The protein is most commonly used for its fluorescence properties in biochemistry. To determine the highest R-phycoerythrin yielding red algal species, a reliable quantification method is required. Calculating R-phycoerythrin yield from the crude extract’s absorption values has been the quickest and most widely used technique but at the same time, often misleading approach when impurities are present. Small phycoerythrin, which is often present in red algal suspensions, alters the absorption curve and leads to erroneous results. In the given study, we utilized an HPLC-SEC method with fluorescence and photo-diode array detectors, which is capable of separating the phycobiliproteins from interfering compounds. Also, the technique can detect and quantitate R-phycoerythrin yields reliably. A total of nine red algal species from Estonian and Japanese waters were tested, and small phycoerythrin was detected from most of the samples. For two of the tested species, the spectrophotometric quantification methods overestimated the yields by more than 200%.