ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the feasibility of using liquid chromatography (HPLC) to characterize the 3, 4-Dihydroxyphenylalanine (DOPA) redox state of mussel adhesive protein (MAP).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The DOPA and protein contents of MAP were determined by HPLC, Arnow and Bradford methods respectively.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>With extended oxidation time, the protein contents of MAP samples remained unchanged whereas the DOPA contents declined. The retention times of main peaks in HPLC for both the accelerated oxidation and retained samples shifted as the storage time extended, which could be related to the changes of sample redox state.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The redox state of MAP can be characterized by the change of HPLC peak retention time. HPLC can be used in the research on the MAP redox state, which is beneficial to the product development and quality control.</p>