A colorimetric assay for measuring phospholipase A2 degradation of phosphatidylcholine at physiological pH.

Phospholipase A(2) is an important enzyme in various pathologies. Although fluorescent substrate assays for it have been recently developed, there is a need for an assay with inexpensive commercially available substrates, useful when samples interfered with fluorescent assays, that is nonisotopic, continuous, conducted at physiological pH, and in a 96 well format. A reaction using bromothymol blue was developed that meets all these requirements.