HIGH-PERFORMANCE IMMUNOAFFINITY CHROMATOGRAPHY SUPPORTS

ONE OF THE MAJOR CHALLENGES IN THE PRODUCTION OF THERAPEUTICALLY USEFUL PROTEINS, INCLUDING PRODUCTS OF RECOMBINANT DNA TECHNOLOGY, IS RAPID AND COST-EFFECTIVE PURIFICATION OF THE PROTEINS. HIGH-PERFORMANCE IMMUNOAFFINITY CHROMATOGRAPHY IS A POWERFUL NEW TECHNIQUE FOR PROTEIN PURIFICATION AT PRODUCTION SCALE. THE USE OF THIS TECHNIQUE HAS BEEN HAMPERED BY THE EXPENSE AND DIFFICULTY OF CUSTOM COUPLING SPECIFIC ANTIBODIES TO SILICA SUPPORTS. IN ADDITION TO THE DEMAND FOR PRODUCTION-SCALE ACTIVATED COLUMNS, BASIC RESEARCHERS HAVE EXPRESSED AN URGENT NEED FOR THIS TYPE OF ACTIVATED SILICA SUPPORT IN A SMALLER FORMAT. THIS RESEARCH WILL DEVELOP ACTIVATED SILICA SUPPORTS THAT WILL BE PREPACKED INTO COLUMNS AND USED FOR IMMOBILIZATION OF SPECIFIC ANTIBODIES BY THE CUSTOMER. PHASE I INCLUDES DEVELOPMENT OF PROTOCOLS FOR PREPARATION OF A NOVEL ACTIVATED SILICA SUPPORT, HYDRAZINE HIPAC, AND USE OF THIS SUPPORT TO IMMOBILIZE IGG VIA OLIGOSACCHARIDES ON THE ANTIBODY. IN PHASE II, PROTOCOLS FOR IMMOBILIZATION OF IGG ON COLUMNS PREPACKED WITH ACTIVATED SILICA WILL BE DEVELOPED.