UV-absorbing pigments in eye tissues of fish from the Great Barrier Reef

Ocular tissues from 52 species (19 families) of tropical marine fish were examined for levels of UV-absorbing pigments in the spectral region 300-380 nm.Specimens of mackerels, tuna and marlin were caught by surface trolling in Bowling Green and Upstart Bays; all other fish were caught by hand-line or spearfishing at Grub, Hunt and Marion Reefs. The eyes were removed and frozen immediately at -20°C. Lens ocular tissues were excised from defrosted samples, crushed and extracts formed by steeping in 5ml methanol. Visible-u.v. absorption spectra from these extracts were recorded. Solid protein biomass was determined from the solid tissue residues. Mycosporine-like amino acids (Asterina-330, palythene, palythine and palythinol) were separated and quantified (nmol/mg protein) using reverse-phase isocratic high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).The efficiency of methanol extraction This research was undertaken to:1. identify and describe the distribution of mycosporine-like amino acid compounds in the lens tissues of marine fish2. develop techniques for quantitative studies of UV absorbing compounds in fish eyes using high performance liquid chromotography3. evaluate the efficiency with which these compounds can be extracted from lens tissues

本研究针对52种（隶属于19个科）热带海洋鱼类的眼部组织，检测其在300~380 nm光谱区间内的紫外吸收色素水平。鲭鱼、金枪鱼及马林鱼的样本于鲍灵格林湾（Bowling Green Bay）与厄普斯塔特湾（Upstart Bays）通过表层拖钓捕获；其余所有鱼类均在格拉布礁、亨特礁和马里恩礁（Grub, Hunt and Marion Reefs）通过手线钓或鱼叉捕鱼获取。
将采集到的眼部组织取出后，立即置于-20℃环境中冷冻保存。从解冻后的样本中剥离晶状体组织，经粉碎后用5 mL甲醇浸泡制备提取液。
对上述提取液记录可见-紫外吸收光谱，并从组织残渣中测定固体蛋白质生物量。采用反相等度高效液相色谱法（reverse-phase isocratic high-performance liquid chromatography, HPLC）分离并定量测定类菌孢素氨基酸（mycosporine-like amino acids，包括Asterina-330、palythene、palythine及palythinol）的含量，单位为nmol/mg蛋白，并测定了甲醇提取的效率。
本研究旨在达成以下目标：1. 鉴定并阐明海洋鱼类晶状体组织中类菌孢素氨基酸类化合物的分布特征；2. 建立基于高效液相色谱法的鱼眼紫外吸收化合物定量研究技术；3. 评估从晶状体组织中提取此类化合物的效率。