Amino acids

Amino acids

Amino acids are of interest for saltwater aquarists.  Many products available for aquarists are just hydrolysed products of different proteins.  These products have an unclear composition of different products and hydrolysed by-products. These products can be used to feed bacteria, but are not suitable to feed corals.  If the aquarist adds too much, the Nitrate level of the tank can rise (Randy Holmes-Farley 2007).

In marine labs the effect of single amino acids on corals is evaluated.  At the European Research Institute in France, corals were incubated with single amino acids.  The uptake of the amino acid in the solution within one day was measured (GROVER 2008).  Especially with the concentration of the two amino acids Histidine and Asparagine acid there was a sharp drop.   

Asparagine acid is one of two acid amino acids which build proteins.

Japanese scientists evaluated the effect of aspartic acid on the calcification of corals (RAHMANN 2009). Their results show aspartic acid controls the rate of calcification.   Aspartic acid is a major part of proteins which are involved in the calcification.

In these proteins the content of aspartic acid is 29% to 61%.   Aspartic acid therefore has a key function (RAHMANN 2008).

LALLAN (2007) found out that in seasons where aspartic acid in the ocean water is very low (winter) the growth rate of corals is lower.  The content of free aspartic acid can be the limiting growth factor of corals, if all other parameters like Calcium, Magnesium, trace elements are of optimum level.

Aspartic acid has two negative charges and is therefore responsible to fix the ions calcium and magnesium which have each two positive charges (RANDY HOLMES-FARLEY 2007).

Dr. Pilz Amino acid A is a concentrated solution of aspartic acid.  The amino acid used is of very high purity as it is used for cell cultures. The solution is free of any by products.

With a daily dosage of two drops in a 100L tank of water, you reach a level of around 0,3µmol/100L. This is the level of aspartic acid in natural sea water.

 

Shop:  http://stores.ebay.de/coral-life-scientific-care-products

 

Literature:          

RANDY HOLMES-FARLEY;              „How to“ Guide to Reef Aquarium Chemistry for Begin;

Part 2: What Chemicals Must be Supplemented; Reefkeeping.com; 2007.

 

RENAULT GROVER et. Al;              Uptake of dissolved free amino acids by the scleratin coral

                                                                Stylophora pistillata; The Journal of Experimental Biology 211, 860-

865. (2008).

 

RAHMANN MA, OOMORI T.;      In vitro regulation of Ca(CO)3 crystal growth by the highly acid

proteins of calcitic sclerites in soft coral, Sinularia Polydactyla;

Connect Tissue Res. 2009; 50(5): 285-93.

 

RAHMANN MA, OOMORI T.;      Aspartic Acid-rich Proteins in insoluble Organic Matrix Play a Key

Role in the Growth of Calcitic Sclerites in Alcyonarian Coral; Chinese Journal of Biotechnology, Vol. 24, 12; Dec 2008.

 

LALLAN et. al.;                                   Endolic aspartic acid as a proxy of fluctuations in coral growth;

                                                                Journal of Geophysical Research, Vol. 112; G1; March 2007,