Quantifying Protein in Cerebrospinal Fluid and Urine: Success Achieved

Featured Article: Pesce MA, Strande CS. A new micromethod for determination of protein in cerebrospinal fluid and urine. Clin Chem 1973;11:1265–7.1This paper described a dye-binding micromethod for measuring protein concentrations in cerebrospinal fluid and urine. The method involved coprecipitation of the proteins with a Ponceau S dye trichloroacetic acid solution, dissolving the protein precipitate in dilute sodium hydroxide, and measuring the absorbance at 560 nm. This method was rapid, easy to use, and required a specimen volume of 5–50 μL.I began my career as a clinical chemist in 1971 in the pediatric microchemistry laboratory at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center. This laboratory served the newborn, infant, and child population of Babies Hospital, …