Determination of purine bases in sea urchin (Paracentortus lividus) gonads by high-performance liquid chromatography

A reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method is described to determine the levels of adenine, guanine, xanthine and hypoxanthine in the gonads of sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus. Purine bases were separated using a C-18 column as the stationary phase, 0.3 M KH2PO4 buffer solution as the mobile phase, and ultraviolet detection at 255 nm. The total amount of purine bases determined in sea urchin canned and frozen storage at −18 °C during 3 and 6 months was high [1.6 g/100 g (dry wt.)] The concentrations of purine bases changed during this time; there was a steady increase in hypoxanthine and decrease of adenine. Good results were obtained with respect to linearity (R>0.9995), reproducibility (RSD% <4.5) and recovery (>98.5%).