Synthesis of hydrophilic boronate affinity monolithic capillary for specific capture of glycoproteins by capillary liquid chromatography

Boronate affinity chromatography is an important tool for specific isolation of cis-diol-containing compounds such as glycoproteins, RNA and carbohydrates. Boronate functionalized monolithic capillaries have been recently developed for specific capture of cis-diol-containing small biomolecules, but the apparent hydrophobicity of the columns prevents them from specific capture of glycoproteins. In this paper, a hydrophilic boronate affinity monolithic capillary was prepared by in situ free radical polymerization, using 4-vinylphenylboronic acid (VPBA) and N, N′-methylenebisacrylamide (MBAA) as functional monomer and cross-linker, respectively. The prepared poly(VPBA-co-MBAA) monolithic capillary exhibited uniform open channel network and high density of accessible boronic acid. Due to the utilization of hydrophilic cross-linker, the prepared column was hydrophilic, allowing for specific capture of glycoproteins.