Purification and Characterization of Glyceraldehyde‐3‐phosphate Dehydrogenase from European Pilchard Sardina pilchardus

The NAD+‐dependent cytosolic glyceralehyde‐3‐phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH; EC 1.2.1.12) was purified from the skeletal muscle of European pilchard Sardina pilchardus and its physicochemical and kinetic properties were investigated. The purification method consisted of two steps, ammonium sulfate fractionation followed by Blue Sepharose CL‐6B chromatography, resulting in an approximately 78‐fold increase in specific activity and a final yield of approximately 25%. The Michaelis constants (Km) for NAD+ and D‐glyceraldehyde‐3‐phosphate were 92.0 μM and 73.4 μM, respectively. The maximal velocity (Vmax) of the purified enzyme was estimated to be 37.6 U/mg. Under the assay conditions, the optimum pH and temperature were 8.0 and 30 °C. The molecular weight of the purified enzyme was 37 kDa determined by sodium dodecyl sulfate‐polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Non‐denaturing polyacrylamide gels yielding a molecular weight of 154 kDa suggested that the enzyme is a homotetramer. Polyclonal antibodies against the purified enzyme were used to recognize the enzyme in different sardine tissues by Western blot analysis. The isoelectric point, obtained by an isoelectric focusing system in polyacrylamide slab gels, revealed only one GAPDH isoform (pI 7.9).