Publications
2001
M. Merhar, A. Podgornik, M. Barut, S. Jakša, M. Zigon, A. Štrancar
J. Liq. Chrom. & Rel. Technol., 24(16), 2429-2443 (2001)
Monoliths have already proven to be efficient chromatographic supports for the separation of various types of molecules. In this paper, the characterization of the novel reversed-phase support, CIM® RP-SDVB disk monolithic column is presented.
Using a 3 mm long RP-SDVB disk monolithic column, excellent separation of proteins within a very short time was achieved. The pressure drop observed on the column was considerably low (few bars), even at flow rates of the mobile phase up to 30 mL/min. Due to the low pressure drop, the use of high flow rates was preferred since they did not influence the quality of the gradient separation. The separation of test proteins was performed within only 14 seconds; faster separations were limited by the configuration of the HPLC system.
Furthermore, RP-SDVB disk monolithic columns were applied for fast separation of peptides. Five peptides of different lengths and composition were successfully separated in a very short time.
Finally, the preparative purification on the laboratory scale of the complex sample of oligodeoxynucleotide within a range of 1 minute demonstrates practical applicability of these columns.
D. Josić, A. Buchacher
J. Biochem. Biophys. Methods 49 (2001) 153–174
Monoliths are useful chromatographic supports, as their structure allows improved mass transport. This results in fast separation. Once the ligand of interest has been immobilized, chromatographic separation can also be accomplished in affinity mode. Ligands with low molecular mass have been shown to be the easiest to immobilize. Nowadays, ligands with low molecular mass are often designed by combinatorial chemical techniques. In addition, many applications have been described where ligands with high molecular mass, such as Proteins A and G, antibodies, lectins and receptors are used.
The immobilization of an enzyme on the monolithic support creates a flow-through reactor. Small proteins, such as carbonic anhydrase, can be directly immobilized on the support. However, in the case of large molecules, the active center of the enzyme is no longer accessible at all or only to a limited degree. An improvement can be achieved by introducing a spacer, which allows maximum enzymatic conversion. Fast conversion of substrates with high molecular mass has been investigated with immobilized trypsin. It was shown that in case of high-molecular-mass substrates, the conversion rate depends very much on the flow-rate. Most applications described have been performed on an analytical or semi-preparative scale. However, the technical problems of up-scaling are close to being definitely solved, enabling enzymatic conversion on a preparative scale in the future.
I. Mihelič, T. Koloini, A. Podgornik, M. Barut, A. Štrancar
Acta Chim. Slov. 2001, 48, 551-564
Monolithic stationary phases are becoming very important field of liquid chromatography. Methacrylate based CIM Convective Interaction Media® monolithic columns and are produced via radical polymerization, which results in a rigid and chemically very stable porous monolithic structure. Some characteristics of small-scale monolithic columns and an example of extremely fast separation of biomolecules are presented in the paper. However, the preparation of large and homogeneous monolithic columns represents a big problem, because the heat released during the polymerization causes distortion of the monolithic structure. A mathematical model employing the polymerization kinetics for the prediction of the temperature profiles and a comparison with the experimental results is presented with the emphasis on the conversion and the rate od the heat release profiles. Finally, the characteristics of a large-scale monolithic column are presented.
D. Josić, A. Buchacher
J. Biochem. Biophys. Methods 49 (2001) 153–174
Monoliths are useful chromatographic supports, as their structure allows improved mass transport. This results in fast separation. Once the ligand of interest has been immobilized, chromatographic separation can also be accomplished in affinity mode. Ligands with low molecular mass have been shown to be the easiest to immobilize. Nowadays, ligands with low molecular mass are often designed by combinatorial chemical techniques. In addition, many applications have been described where ligands with high molecular mass, such as Proteins A and G, antibodies, lectins and receptors are used.
The immobilization of an enzyme on the monolithic support creates a flow-through reactor. Small proteins, such as carbonic anhydrase, can be directly immobilized on the support. However, in the case of large molecules, the active center of the enzyme is no longer accessible at all or only to a limited degree. An improvement can be achieved by introducing a spacer, which allows maximum enzymatic conversion. Fast conversion of substrates with high molecular mass has been investigated with immobilized trypsin. It was shown that in case of high-molecular-mass substrates, the conversion rate depends very much on the flow-rate. Most applications described have been performed on an analytical or semi-preparative scale. However, the technical problems of up-scaling are close to being definitely solved, enabling enzymatic conversion on a preparative scale in the future.
H. Podgornik, M. Stegu, A. Podgornik, A. Perdih
FEMS Microbiology Letters 201 (2001) 265-269
High initial Mn(II) concentration results in accumulation of a Mn(III) tartrate complex in the growth medium of Phanerochaete chrysosporium. Since Mn(III) is the major oxidant in ligninolysis by manganese peroxidase, the role of accumulated complex should not be neglected when degradation experiments by a crude culture filtrate are performed. To study the Mn(III) complex oxidative potential it was isolated by absorption to polyamide followed by desorption with an alkaline methanol solution. High performance liquid chromatography analysis and atomic absorption spectroscopy confirmed that the isolate was Mn(III) tartrate. Oxidation of 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenz-thiazoline-6-sulfonate) was used for testing the temperature and pH stability of the isolate that also intensively oxidized 2,6-dimethoxyphenol. In comparison with the non-isolated complex in the culture filtrate, the isolate showed increased temperature and pH stability. The oxidative potential of the isolated Mn(III) tartrate was additionally tested by decolorization of the synthetic dye Indigo carmine.
2000
R. Hahn, A. Jungbauer
Analytical Chemistry, 7.2. 2000, (4853-4858)
Monoliths are stationary phases cast as a continuous medium which are interlaced by flow channels ramified with micropores. Pulse response experiments with bovine serum albumin as a model protein were applied for testing polymethacrylate-based monoliths, resulting in peak broadening that practically was not influenced by the chromatographic velocity. An empirical model was developed to describe peak broadening, allowing a term to account for the pore convection and a term for the pore diffusion. A diffusional distance lower than 10 nm was estimated. This corresponds to values observed with monodisperse 1-μm particles. Systematic investigations by changing the response time of the detector showed that the full potential of the monoliths could not be exploited, since the currently available chromatography systems are the limiting factor regarding the speed of data acquisition and virtual peak broadening by the infinite length of the detector. Inertia of the liquid and synchronization between liquid handling and electronic control introduced an additional disturbance. At the lowest possible response time, reliable peak data could be obtained up to a velocity of 35 cm/min. The pressure drop along the continuous bed was much smaller compared to a conventionally packed bed. Different flow patterns and significantly reduced eddy vortexes may be responsible for the high specific permeability.
H. LeThanh, B. Lendl
Analytica Chimica Acta 422 (2000) 63–69
A fully automated method for the rapid determination of organic acids (citric-, malic- and tartaric acid) and sugars (glucose, fructose, and sucrose) in soft drinks by sequential injection Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy is presented. A convective interaction media (CIM) disc carrying quaternary amino moieties was added as a solid phase extraction column to the flow system. Upon injection of a sample the organic acids were completely retained on the CIM disc whereas sugars passed to the flow cell. The organic acids were subsequently eluted by injection of an alkaline (pH 8.5) 1 M sodium chloride solution and recorded in their fully deprotonated form as a second flow injection peak. In both cases, the FTIR spectra corresponding to the peak maxima were selected for data evaluation. Two partial least squares models, one for sugars and the other for organic acids, were constructed based on the analysis of standards containing all six analytes. The developed method was applied to natural samples yielding results which were in good agreement with those obtained by an external reference method (enzymatic test kits). Deviations in the results were 3.4. and 4.1% for citric and malic acid and ranged from 4.7–5.1% for the sugars. The developed method is characterized by its short analysis time, experimental simplicity and its potential applications in routine analysis and process control.
M. Vodopivec, M. Berovič, J. Jančar, A. Podgornik, A. Štrancar
Analytica Chimica Acta 407 (2000) 105-110
A new polymeric macroporous material, Convective Interaction Media (CIM) was applied as a support for glucose oxidase (GOD) immobilisation. CIM epoxy disks with the immobilised enzyme were integrated as an enzyme reactor in a flow injection analysis (FIA) system and applied to on-line monitoring of glucose during cultivation of Saccharomyces cerevisiae and citric acid production by Aspergillus niger. The developed CIM GOD disk–FIA system exhibited good signal reproducibility and satisfactory long-term stability with a linear response in the range 10–200 mg l-1. The CIM disk applied as an enzyme reactor proved to be a successful replacement for conventionally used packed-bed columns and as such it was well suited for on-line monitoring of bioprocesses.
1999
A. Podgornik, M. Barut, J. Jančar, A. Štrancar, T. Tennikova
Analytical Chemistry, 1999, Vol. 71, No. 15, 2986-2991
High-performance membrane chromatography (HPMC) proved to be a very efficient method for fast protein separations. Recently, it was shown to be applicable also for the isocratic chromatography of plasmid DNA conformations. However, no study about the separation of small molecules has been performed until now. In this work, we investigated the possibility of gradient and isocratic HPMC of small molecules with Convective Interaction Media disks of different chemistries and tried to explain the mechanism that enables their separation. We demonstrated that it is possible to achieve efficient separations of oligonucleotides and peptides in the ion-exchange mode as well as the separation of small hydrophobic molecules in the reversed-phase mode. It was shown that similar peak resolution can be provided in both gradient and isocratic modes.
A. Podgornik, M. Barut, J. Jančar, A. Štrancar
Journal of Chromatography A, 848 (1999) 51–60
In this work, the isocratic separation of oligonucleotides in the ion-exchange mode on thin glycidylmethacrylate–ethylenedimethacrylate (GMA–EDMA) monoliths in the form of commercially available CIM (Convective Interaction Media) disks is presented. It was found that isocratic separation occurs even on monoliths with a thickness of only 0.75 mm. Peak broadening of the components retained on the monolith is proportional to the retention time, which in turn is proportional to the thickness of the monolith. Peak height is inversely proportional to the retention time. From these results it can be concluded that the mechanism of the separation on such monoliths is similar to that in HPLC columns filled with conventional porous particles. The height equivalent to a theoretical plate of GMA–EDMA monoliths is calculated to be 18.0 μm. The capacity factor k′ depends, exponentially, on the salt concentration. The Z factor calculated from fitted equations increases linearly with the oligonucleotide’s length. It was also found that the difference between peak retention volume slightly increases with the flow-rate when the experiments are performed in the range from 0.5 to 7 ml/min. From the similarities between the isocratic separations on conventional columns and on thin GMA–EDMA monoliths it is reasonable to believe that separation based on a multiple adsorption/desorption process also occurs in thin monoliths.
D. Josić, A. Štrancar
Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. 1999, 38, 333-342
For fast separation of biopolymers, recently developed media have become increasingly widespread. They consist either of membranes or of compact, porous disks and tubes, both called Convective Interaction Media (CIM). Separation can be carried out in every mode, e.g., ion-exchange, reversed-phase, hydrophobic-interaction, and affinity recognition. The units can be used for analytical as well as for preparative purposes. Such fast analytical units will allow separations within less than 10 s and can therefore be used for in-process analysis. The advantages and disadvantages of such analytical and preparative separations are discussed along with technical problems which have been solved.
H. Podgornik, A. Podgornik, A. Perdih
Analytical Biochemistry 272, 43–47 (1999)
The HPLC separation of lignin peroxidase isoenzymes using Convective Interaction Media disks containing quaternary amine and diethylaminoethyl ion-exchange active groups is proposed. In contrast to standard HPLC procedures the separation can be performed within a few minutes without considerably affecting the separation resolution. The method is reproducible and gives a linear response of integrated peak area to protein concentration for all measured isoenzymes. The separation resolution is retained unchanged by applying crude culture filtrate instead of a sample previously frozen and dialyzed. The optimized method might therefore be used for on-line monitoring of lignin peroxidase isoenzyme composition during fermentation. On the other hand, the proposed method is comparable in time to the original method of lignin peroxidase activity measurement (proposed by Tien and Kirk), providing additionally the isoenzyme composition.
1998
M. B. Tennikov, N. V. Gazdina, T. B. Tennikova, F. Švec
Journal of Chromatography A, 798 (1998) 55–64
The effect of porous structures of 2-mm thick diethylamine functionalized monolithic polymethacrylate discs on their chromatographic behavior in ion-exchange mode has been studied. Discs with small pores did not perform well because they exhibited high back pressure and substantial peak broadening. Discs characterized with pores larger than 1 000 nm did not provide good separations either because the time required for some protein molecules to traverse the length across the pore to reach the wall for adsorption/desorption process that is essential for the separation may be longer than their residence time within the matrix. Optimum pore size is centered at about 700 nm. Excellent separations have been achieved with these discs even at very steep gradients and high flow-rates which allow to shorten the separation times substantially.
A. Štrancar, M. Barut, A. Podgornik, P. Koselj, D. Josić, A. Buchacher
LC-GC International – October 1998, 660-670
Separation supports based on convective interaction media (CIM) allow higher throughputs and separations; faster by one order of magnitude when compared with separation materials based on conventional porous particles (1). In the future, they may well play an important role in the production and quality control of diagnostic and therapeutic products based on large biomolecules. A major advantage of CIM is their use in control procedures during production processes — an important factor in satisfying the demands of regulatory authorities, both with regard to the registration of the product as a drug, and also in controlling the process in such a manner that immediate correction is possible should the process deviate from the prescribed path. The CIM supports can easily be scaled up because the larger units are made of the same material and can be used for fast separations on the preparative level. Additionally, these supports can be used for the ‘so-called’ conjoint liquid chromatography (CLC), by combining two or more discs with different ligand groups in the same housing. Finally, owing to their low back pressures and very fast response, CIM supports can be used as biosensors or bioreactors with immobilized enzymes.
D. Josić, H. Schwinn, A. Štrancar, A. Podgornik, M. Barut, Y. P. Lim, M. Vodopivec
Journal of Chromatography A, 803 (1998) 61–71
Different ligands with high molecular masses are immobilized on compact, porous separation units and used for affinity chromatography. In subsequent experiments different enzymes are immobilized and used for converting substrates with low and high molecular masses. Disk or tube with immobilized concanavalin A (ConA) are used as model systems for lectin affinity chromatography. The enzyme glucose oxidase is used as a standard protein to test the ConA units. Subsequently glycoproteins from plasma membranes of rat liver are separated, using units with immobilized ConA. The enzyme dipeptidyl peptidase IV, which is used as a model protein in the experiments, is enriched about 40-fold in a single step, with a yield of over 90%. The results are only slightly better than those obtained with ConA when it is immobilized on bulk supports. The important improvement lies in the reduction of separation time to only 1 h. Experiments concerning the isolation of monoclonal antibodies against clotting factor VIII (FVIII) are carried out on disks, combining anion-exchange chromatography and protein A affinity chromatography as a model for multidimensional chromatography. Both IgG (bound to the protein A disk) and accompanying proteins (bound to the anion-exchange disk) from mouse ascites fluid are retarded and eluted separately. With the immobilized enzymes invertase and glucose oxidase (GOX) the corresponding substrates with low molecular masses, saccharose and glucose, are converted. It is shown that the amount of immobilized enzyme and the concentration of the substrate are responsible for the extent of the conversion, whereas the flow-rates used in the experiments have no effect at all. The influence of immobilization chemistry was investigated with GOX. Indirect immobilization with ConA as spacer proved to be the best alternative. With trypsin, immobilized on a disk, substrates with high molecular masses are digested in flow-through. For optimal digestion the proteins have to be denatured in the buffer for sodium dodecyl sulfate–polyacrlyamide gel electrophoresis prior to application. In contrast to the conversion of substrates with low molecular masses, flow-rates play an important part in conversion of substrates with high molecular masses. With lower flow-rates a higher degree of digestion is achieved.
D. Josić, H. Schwinn, A. Štrancar, A. Podgornik, M. Barut, Y. P. Lim, M. Vodopivec
Journal of Chromatography A, 803 (1998) 61–71
Different ligands with high molecular masses are immobilized on compact, porous separation units and used for affinity chromatography. In subsequent experiments different enzymes are immobilized and used for converting substrates with low and high molecular masses. Disk or tube with immobilized concanavalin A (ConA) are used as model systems for lectin affinity chromatography. The enzyme glucose oxidase is used as a standard protein to test the ConA units. Subsequently glycoproteins from plasma membranes of rat liver are separated, using units with immobilized ConA. The enzyme dipeptidyl peptidase IV, which is used as a model protein in the experiments, is enriched about 40-fold in a single step, with a yield of over 90%. The results are only slightly better than those obtained with ConA when it is immobilized on bulk supports. The important improvement lies in the reduction of separation time to only 1 h. Experiments concerning the isolation of monoclonal antibodies against clotting factor VIII (FVIII) are carried out on disks, combining anion-exchange chromatography and protein A affinity chromatography as a model for multidimensional chromatography. Both IgG (bound to the protein A disk) and accompanying proteins (bound to the anion-exchange disk) from mouse ascites fluid are retarded and eluted separately. With the immobilized enzymes invertase and glucose oxidase (GOX) the corresponding substrates with low molecular masses, saccharose and glucose, are converted. It is shown that the amount of immobilized enzyme and the concentration of the substrate are responsible for the extent of the conversion, whereas the flow-rates used in the experiments have no effect at all. The influence of immobilization chemistry was investigated with GOX. Indirect immobilization with ConA as spacer proved to be the best alternative. With trypsin, immobilized on a disk, substrates with high molecular masses are digested in flow-through. For optimal digestion the proteins have to be denatured in the buffer for sodium dodecyl sulfate–polyacrlyamide gel electrophoresis prior to application. In contrast to the conversion of substrates with low molecular masses, flow-rates play an important part in conversion of substrates with high molecular masses. With lower flow-rates a higher degree of digestion is achieved.
1996
A. Štrancar, P. Koselj, H. Schwinn, D. Josić
Analytical Chemistry, Vol. 68, No. 19, October 1, 1996
Production and downstream processing in biotechnology requires fast and accurate control of each step in the process. Improved techniques which can be validated are required in order to meet these demands. For these purposes, chromatographic units containing compact porous disks for fast separation of biopolymers were developed and investigated with regard to their performance and speed. The problems that have, in the past, arisen from the use of wide and flat separation units, such as membranes and disks, have chiefly been those of sample distribution and large void volumes before and behind the unit. Improvements in the construction of the cartridge have led to better performance of the compact porous disks and faster separation. Using these disks, three calibration standard proteins could be separated within less than 1 min by an anion-exchange, cation-exchange, and hydrophobic interaction mode. Such units can be used for in-process control in production and downstream processing of biopolymers, as was shown in experiments involving the purification of α1-antitrypsin and clotting factor IX and the immobilization of enzyme glucose oxidase on an epoxy-activated compact porous disk.
1995
B. G. Belenkii, V. G. Malt'sev
BioFeature, BioTechniques, 288, Vol. 18, No. 2 (1995)
In gradient chromatography for proteins migrating along the chromatographic column, the critical distance X0 has been shown to exist at which the separation of zones is at a maximum and band spreading is at a minimum. With steep gradients and small elution velocity, the column length may be reduced to the level of membrane thickness-about one millimeter. The peculiarities of this novel separation method for proteins, high-performance membrane chromatography (HPMC), are discussed and stepwise elution is shown to be especially effective. HPMC combines the advantages of membrane technology and high-performance liquid chromatography, and avoids their drawbacks.
1990
T. B. Tennikova, B. G. Belenkii, F. Švec
Journal of Liquid Chromatography, 13(1), 63-70 (1990)
Basing on the fact that only short layers of a chromatographic column contribute to the separation in the interaction chromatography, 1 mm thick membranes from macroporous methacrylate polymer provided with functional groups were synthetized and used for protein separation. The chromatograms show that the separation is fully comparable with that experienced on a filled column but the advantage of a membrane is up to two orders of magnitude lower pressure during the process and very high loading reaching up to 40 g/m2. This recommends the high performance membrane chromatography also for large scale preparative separations.