Separation Technology for Glycoproteins

The successful identification, production, and purification of useful proteins (e.g., organophosphorous hydrolase) would allow for its incorporation into sensors, armor and equipment for soldiers, helping to improve soldier health and performance. Large portions of proteins undergo post-translational modification, resulting in a varying degree of protein function. The range of modifications that glycoproteins may undergo is vast due to the number of potential carbohydrate moieties that a protein could accept. Current separation and detection technologies have proven insufficient for dealing with glycoproteins; therefore, there is a great need for developing new separation techniques and/or technologies that can add a third dimension of separation for glycosylated proteins and other modified proteins. Lynntech proposes to develop a novel system capable of separating various levels of glycosylation within a targeted protein family, through the use of a novel carbohydrate affinity separation system. In the Phase I project, Lynntech will prove the feasibility of the novel separation system for isolating varying degrees of glycosylation that have occurred in a protein sample. In the Phase II project, Lynntech will build a prototype separation system that can be integrated with current commercially available two-dimensional separation systems to create a multi-dimensional separation system for glycoproteins.