Preparation of plasma membranes from fertilized sea urchin eggs.

A new method is presented for preparation of highly purified plasma membranes from fertilized sea urchin eggs. The purified plasma membranes are in vesicle form and are highly enriched in ouabain inhibitable, Na+/K+ ATPase activity. Analysis of membrane proteins by sodium dodecyl sulfate-gel electrophoresis indicates that several high-molecular-weight proteins characteristic of plasma membranes from unfertilized eggs are absent in plasma membranes from fertilized eggs.