Rapid estimation of potato tuber total protein content with coomassie brilliant blue G-250

A new method for measuring protein with Coo-massie Brilliant Blue G-250 has been adapted for use as a screening method in a potato tuber protein improvement breeding program. The method is simple, fast and inexpensive, and has successfully estimated the total protein content of a broad range of tuber genotypes having dissimilar amino acid profiles and tuber maturities. Correlation between the Coomassie method and a modified micro-Kjeldahl method, the standard method used in the potato breeding program, was 0.93. Free amino acids and other compounds which interfere with other methods for measuring protein do not interfere with the Coomassie Brilliant Blue procedure.