Western blotting of steroidal alkaloid glycosides using monoclonal antibody against solamargine

A method for the determination of solasodine glycosides using western blotting was investigated. Solasodine glycosides, separated by silica gel thin-layer chromatography, were transferred to a polyvinylidene difluoride membrane. The membrane was treated with sodium periodate solution followed by bovine serum albumin, resulting in a solasodine glycoside-bovine serum albumin conjugate. Individual spots were stained with monoclonal antibody against solamargine. Immunostaining of solasodine glycosides was more sensitive compared with other staining methods. The newly established western blotting method is extended to the distribution of solasodine glycosides in plants.