Measurement of invertase activity of cells of Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

The determination of the invertase activity of intact yeast cells presents a critical point, that is, the blockage of the enzyme action at a given moment. In this paper seven blockage methods were compared: the addition of 0.010 M sodium hydroxide solution, addition of 0.010 M sodium carbonate solution, addition of 0.010 M sodium carbonate solution followed by centrifugation (9750g; 10 min), immersion of the reacting mixture in a boiling water bath, immersion of the mixture in a -15 degrees C bath, filtration through a Millipore membrane, and addition of the first Somogyi's reagent followed by immersion in a boiling water bath. Only the last two methods lead to a rapid and effective blockage of the invertase activity.