Mucus glycoproteins composition

In industrialised societies, most gallbladder stones are mixed in composition. They contain not only cholesterol but also bile pigments, calcium salts, mucus glycoprotein and often amorphous material. Nonetheless, they are still described as cholesterol-rich although the arbitrary definition for cholesterol-rich stones varies from author to author ranging from >70% to >90% by weight. 

A review of analyses of the composition of mucus indicated that protein makes up 4—49% of the coral organism with total N making up 0.04—5.2% of mucus (Brown and BytheU, 2005). The primary constituents of the mucus matrix are glycoproteins or mucins. In a recent model of the mucus layer, organic exudates and organic N are released from the coral surface and go on to support a dynamic microbial community within the mucopolysaccharide layer around the coral (Rohwer and KeUey, 2004). 

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