Association of Enzyme Inhibition with Methods of Museum Skin Preparation. (May 1997)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Malcolm Hall, L.; Willcox, Mark S.; Jones, David S.
• Is Part Of: Biotechniques. Volume 22:Number 5(1997)
• Page Start: 928
• Page End: 934
• Publication Date: 1997-05
• Subjects: Biology, Experimental -- Periodicals; Molecular biology -- Periodicals; Medical technology -- Periodicals; Biology, Experimental; Medical technology; Molecular biology; Clinical Laboratory Techniques -- Periodicals; Research -- Periodicals; Medical Laboratory Science -- Periodicals; Periodicals; Electronic journals; 570
• DOI: 10.2144/97225st07
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0736-6205

Abstract

Enzyme inhibition is commonly encountered when using molecular biological techniques on museum-prepared animal skin samples, and this problem is exacerbated by a lack of information on how particular skins have been prepared for preservation. This report: (i) demonstrates that while some methods of museum preparation inhibit both proteinase K digestion and the PCR, others do not; (ii) describes a change in buffer conditions that reduces proteinase K enzyme inhibition during tissue digestion; and (iii) uses electron-dispersive X-ray microanalysis (EDXA) to show that the preparation methods for museum-preserved skin are often more complex than the treatment description provided with samples and also suggests that some of these descriptions are incorrect.