Purification of Bysal Mussel (Modiolus sp. PG) Adhesive Protein fp-2 from Nortern Seashore of Persian Gulf

Mussel bivalves produce and secret sticky proteins which facilitate the adherence to surfaces in the aquatic environments. Specific properties of these proteins such as adhesion, resistance and biocompatibility have introduced their uses in biomedical engineering, dentals and production of biological adhesives.
With respect to the morphologic indexes and COI gene sequence, the species of dwarves from the Persian Gulf were sampled. To identify the polyphenol glands, which produce the adhesive proteins, tissue sections were prepared from the foot. Then, the mussel fp-2 protein was purified by the ion-exchange chromatography using salt and pH gradients and, the gel filtration chromatography. To confirm the presence of proteins in each fraction the Arnow test and NBT staining were used. For detection of the protein homogeneity, in each purification stage the SDS-PAGE electrophoresis was used. The NBT positive chromatogram peaks, after concentration and electrophoresis by Acid-Urea method, were blotted on nitrocellulose and detected by NBT test.
The specie morphology and taxonomy were recorded and matched to the FAO criteria and, "The Mollusks of Persian Gulf" the Persian reference book. It was belong to the Mytilidae family and Modiolus genus. The DNA and protein sequences were recorded in NCBI data bank as AB972412.1 and BAP16437.1 respectively. Also, the molecular weight of the purified fp-2 protein was about 45 KD.
The present study was led to the morphologic and genetic identification of Modiolus sp. PG from the Persian Gulf along with the purification of fp-2 adhesive protein.