Resolution and characterization of a major protein of the sea urchin hyaline layer.

A major protein component of the gel-like, embryonic hyaline layer of Strongylocentrotus purpuratus has been purified and characterized. The protein retains the ability to form an insoluble gel in the presence of specific divalent cations, a property characteristic of the hyaline material. Using a light scattering assay developed to measure the initial rate of hyalin gelation, we have been able to show that calcium alone is capable of initiating this reaction but that calcium and magnesium are synergistic in their effect. In the absence of divalent cations, the major hyalin protein has a molecular weight of 9.2 +/- 0.5 X 10(5) and a sedimentation coefficient of 11.6 S; these and other data indicate that the protein assumes a very elongated, rod-like structure in solution. Smaller amounts of two additional proteins, 8.8 and 6.5 S, are present in the hyalin fraction when the jelly coat and vitelline layer are subjected to a more stringent acid treatment early in the isolation procedure.