Atomic Absorbance Spectroscopy to Measure Intracellular Zinc Pools in Mammalian CellsShellaina J.V. Gordon *1, Yao Xiao *2, Amanda L. Paskavitz 3, Napoleón Navarro-Tito 4, Juan G. Navea 2, Teresita Padilla-Benavides 1
1Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, 2Department of Chemistry, Skidmore College, 3Candiac MR Center, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 4Facultad de Ciencias Químico Biológicas, Universidad Autónoma de Guerrero
Cultured primary or established cell lines are commonly used to address fundamental biological and mechanistic questions as an initial approach before using animal models. This protocol describes how to prepare whole cell extracts and subcellular fractions for studies of zinc (Zn) and other trace elements with atomic absorbance spectroscopy.