In
this study, the effects of metal ions (Al3+, Fe2+, Cu2+, and Zn2+) on precipitation
of a purified gallotannin 1,2,3,4,6-penta-O-galloyl-β-d-glucopyranose (PGG) by bovine serum albumin (BSA) were quantitatively
analyzed. The stoichiometric ratios of the complexation of metal ions
to PGG and methyl gallate (MeG) which can be defined as gallotannins
monomer were also explored. The results showed that the addition of
metal ions could reduce the solubility of PGG–protein complex
and increase the PGG–protein precipitation. Precipitation studies
showed that Al3+ and Fe2+ with a higher stoichiometric
ratio to PGG and MeG had greater effects on PGG–protein precipitation
than Cu2+ and Zn2+. The results of this study
suggested that metal ions could combine with PGG to form PGG–metal
complex and interact with protein to form PGG–metal–protein
ternary complexes, which resulted in the increase of PGG–protein
precipitation. Consequently, a model of interaction between metal
ions and PGG–protein precipitation was proposed.