RECOVERY AND PURIFICATION OF B-PHYCOERYTHRIN PRODUCED BY PORPHYRIDIUM CRUENTUM USING AQUEOUS TWO-PHASE SYSTEMS AND ISOELECTRIC PRECIPITATION.

摘要

The present invention is focused to a novel process wherein the Porphyridium cruentum biomass is initially subjected to a cell rupture step and subsequently to recovery and purification steps for obtaining purified B-phycoerythrin (BPE) protein dye using aqueous two-phase systems. The recovery steps mainly include an isoelectric precipitation followed by an extraction step, then the biomass is subjected to an ultra filtration step so as to remove polymer (PEG) and obtain a dye having a purity higher than 4.0, which is measured as the ratio between absorbances at 545 nm and 280 nm (purity of BPR= Abs545 nm / Abs543 nm).