Application Notes

Filamentous phage M13 is a rod shaped non-lytic bacterial virus. M13 genetic material is used for many recombinant DNA processes, and the virus has also been studied for its uses in nanostructures and nanotechnology. The phage has been intensively studied for purposes of phage display and as a delivery vehicle for gene therapy. Phage display was first demonstrated with M13 bacteriophages and the filamentous phage remains a workhorse for this technology. Because of its typical size and rod shape it is considered as a challenging for purification. With large and highly interconnected pores monolithic chromatographic supports are also bridging that problem.

The ability to improve the purification process of M13 and other phages can have a significant impact on the market. By using phages for gene therapy, there will be a decrease in manufacturing time and production costs while enhancing the gene insertion. For phage display, a quicker method for phage purification will allow this powerful tool, which shortens the new drug discovery path and illuminates the basic interactions between different proteins, to be used with higher frequency.

Bacteriophages are used in a broad range of applications, including phage therapy and phage display. With the growing problem of antibiotic resistance leading to untreatable bacterial infections, they are becoming very interesting as antimicrobial agents, not only in medicine, but also in veterinary medicine, food industry and agriculture. Phages intended for use as antimicrobial agents, especially those for human use, need to be purified of contaminants.

Here we present efficient single step purification method for a Staphylococcus aureus phage VDX-10 from bacterial lysate on a CIM® QA Disk Monolithic Column (Figure 1). The described method can be used also on a larger scale using a CIM® QA-8 mL Tube Monolithic Column (Figure 2).

Bacteriophages, viruses that infect bacteria, are being used as antibacterial agents, in phage display screening, as gene therapy delivery systems, and for bacteria typing. To use phages in these applications, they must be free of all impurities. A purification and concentration process was recently developed using an ion exchange monolithic column [1]. One of the key challenges faced in phage purification is the monitoring of genomic DNA (gDNA) released to the growth medium which can interfere with the various applications of phages. CIMac™ DEAE Analytical Columns can be used to monitor the fermentation process, evaluate the amount of degraded gDNA to determine the optimal fermentation endpoint and then to efficiently purify the phage particles.

As the demand for plasmid DNA (pDNA) based gene therapy and vaccines increases, large scale, cost effective, and reproducible pDNA production will be required. The key to success is a real time in-process control method that ensures a high percentage of supercoiled pDNA in the final product. CIMac™ pDNA Analytical Column allows the monitoring of degradation products (open circular and linear pDNA), the removal of impurities (RNA), and ensures that each production step is yielding the amount of supercoiled pDNA anticipated.

The demand for monoclonal antibodies is invariably increasing on an annual basis. To satisfy increasing demands, faster and cheaper ways of manufacturing are explored. A quest for alternative paths in manufacturing not only requires development of most economical manufacturing process, but also rapid method development and development of good analytics for monitoring of manufacturing. For a quickly developed process, the use of reliable and fast analytical techniques are crucial. Moreover, this analytical technique should than be preferably used also for in-process control during manufacturing stage.

Here we present fast and reliable method for processing and analyzing IgG, IgA ang IgM using CIM® QA Disk Monolithic Column, which thrive upon speed, repeatability and high capacity.

A Hemoglobin A1c reference standard was loaded on CIM® SO3 monolithic column and eluted in a mixed stepwise and linear gradient. HbA1a, HbA1b and HbA0 variants were separated and a complete determination of HbA1c (including equilibration) was obtained within 1.1 minute.

A mixture of IgG, HSA and IgM standard was loaded on CIM® EDA Disk and eluted in linear salt gradient at a flow rate of 4 mL/min (12 CV/min). A complete separation of IgM from IgG and HSA was obtained within 1.5 minute.

Immunoaffinity columns were prepared by immobilization of Protein G on CIM® Epoxy Disk, CIM® Epoxy tube (1 mL) and an activated, particle based agarose support. A comparison of productivity was performed by loading centrifuged human plasma and resulted in superior productivity of CIM® monolithic supports.