Abstract

A rapid HPLC method has been developed for measuring elastin in skin tissue and bating process liquors.

Desmosine and iso-desmosine from the hydrolysed samples were enriched on a cellulose mini-column before being separated by ion pair reverse phase chromatography on a C, column using 0.1 M phosphate buffer-acetonitrile (3: 1) containing 20mM sodium dodecyl sulphate (final pH 4.5) followed by UV detection at 270 nm. The method was successfully applied both to the measurement of elastin content in ovine and bovine skin tissue and to the measurement of elastin content in bating process liquors.

Measurements of elastin content of ovine and bovine skin have shown that elastin levels increase with age and ovine skins have higher levels than bovine skins. Bate liquor studies have shown that there is an initial delay in elastin release during bating, followed by release increasing on a linear basis.