Tyrosinase Activity Assay Kit (Colorimetric)

Tyrosinase is a copper-binding enzyme that is expressed across a vast range of species ranging from bacteria and fungi to mammals. It is involved in two sequential reactions of the melanin synthesis pathway; first being the hydroxylation of a monophenol and second the conversion of an ortho-diphenol to a quinone. Quinone then undergoes a series of reactions including polymerization to form melanin. Tyrosinase is of great interest to the agriculture industry since it causes browning of fruits, vegetable and mushrooms, as well as to the cosmetic industry as it causes skin darkening. Development and screening of tyrosinase inhibitors, therefore, is very useful for conditions such as hyperpigmentation and melasma. Tyrosinase activity is significantly increased in melanoma. Therefore, the detection of tyrosinase activity could be promising as a specific diagnostic test for melanoma and may be useful in monitoring patient response to melanoma treatments.

The kit is suitable for the measurement of tyrosinase activity in cell lysates (e.g. Melanoma cells), tissue lysates, plant tissue lysates (e.g. potato), recombinant enzyme and purified protein.

In this assay, tyrosinase catalyzes the conversion of a phenolic substrate to a Quinone intermediate, which reacts with the tyrosine enhancer forming a highly stable chromophore with absorbance at A₅₁₀ nm. The assay can detect as low as 30 μU Tyrosinase in biological samples.

Tyrosinase Activity Assay Kit:

• Non-radioactive assay.
• Sensitive, detecting Tyrosinase Activity ≤30 μU.