ARS | Publication request: CORRELATION OF HPLC AND IMMUNOASSAYS FOR GLYCOALKALOIDS IN POTATO TUBERS AND LEAVES

Submitted to: Potato Journal
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: July 27, 1996
Publication Date: N/A

Technical Abstract: Before a new potato variety can be released for commercial use, a large number of samples must be tested for various components including glycoalkaloids. A need, therefore, exists for a reliable, simple, rapid, and inexpensive analytical method for glycoalkaloids in tubers and leaves. An immunoassay would seem to be ideal for this purpose. To address this need, we have developed a panel of monoclonal antibodies for potato glycoalkaloids. Our studies suggest that these antibodies provide a basis for rapid and inexpensive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) for total glycoalkaloids (TGA) in tubers and leaves. Correlation of glycoalkaloid content of fresh tubers determined by HPLC and ELISA was high (R = 0.987). Correlation of results on fresh leaves was somewhat lower (R = 0.915). Our results also showed that the ELISA method required only a simplified extraction method compared to that used for HPLC. This would seem to make it useful for field tests and for screening large numbers of samples for TGA. Specific glycoalkaloid such as a- chaconine, B2-chaconine, and a-solanine would still need to be determined on selected samples by some other method such as HPLC. Other advantages and limitations of ELISA and HPLC for fresh and processed potatoes will also be discussed.