Electrophoretic data in designing strategies for purification and identification of a highly polymorphic bacterial esterase.

We have purified a bacterial enzyme, designated esterase M, by tailoring an efficient and rapid strategy with information derived from titration curves of proteins in crude extract. The pH-dependent stability of the enzyme activity observed by titration pattern allowed an acidic pH treatment of extract and a cationic exchange chromatography at pH 4.1. These two steps were followed by an anionic exchange chromatography and a preparative electrophoresis. Thus, the enzyme was purified about 2000-fold within two days with a recovery of 13.3%. The electrophoretic variants of esterase M were investigated for their molecular relationship through the specific effect of antibodies on esterase electrophoretic pattern (immunosubtractive electrophoresis) which is applicable to large series of samples. By this process, we have demonstrated the presence of common antigenic determinants among the electromorphs of esterase M produced by the three species of motile Aeromonas.