Stability of recombinant green fluorescent protein (GFPuv) in glucose solutions at different concentrations and pH values

The stability at room temperature (25°C) of recombinant green fluorescent protein (GFPuv), expressed by Escherichia coli cells and isolated by three-phase partitioning extraction with hydrophobic interaction column, was studied. The GFPuv was diluted in buffered (each 10 mM: Tris-HCl, pH 8.0; phosphate, pH 6.0 and 7.0 and acetate, pH 5.0) and in unbuffered (water for injection [WFI]; pH 6.70 ± 0.40) glucose solutions (from 1.5 to 50%). By assaying the loss of fluorescence intensity as a measure of denaturation, the stability of GFPuv in these solutions was evaluated relative to glucose concentration, pH, osmolarity, density, conductivity, and viscosity. The extent of protein denaturation (loss of fluorescence intensity) was expressed in decimal reduction time (D-value), the time required to reduce 90% of the initial fluorescence intensity of GFPuv. The D-value between 56 and 83 h of GFPuv at 1.5–15% glucose in WFI was equivalent to 20–30% glucose in a phosphate. The stability of GFPuv in 50% glucose was similar for all buffers studied and four times higher than in WFI. By the convenient measure of fluorescence intensity, GFPuv can be used as an indicator to report the extent of denaturation rates of other proteins in glucose solutions.     

Effects of sodium phosphate buffer on horseradish peroxidase thermal stability

Thermal stability of horseradish peroxidase (HRP) was studied by differential scanning calorimetry, tryptophan fluorescence, the heme absorption and enzymatic activity analysis while the concentrations of sodium phosphate buffer ranged from 2.5 to 50 mM at pH 7.0. The results showed that the denaturation temperature (T _m) values decreased and the intrinsic tryptophan fluorescence intensity of denatured HRP increased as sodium phosphate buffer concentration increased. Furthermore, the heme absorbance at 403 nm and enzymatic activity of HRP decreased with the increasing buffer concentrations. According to data obtained in this experiment, it can be concluded that sodium phosphate accelerated the denaturation process of HRP and reduced the thermal stability of HRP.     

Comparison of droplet flocculation in hexadecane oil-in-water emulsions stabilized by beta-lactoglobulin at pH 3 and 7

The influence of surface and thermal denaturation of adsorbed beta-lactoglobulin (beta-Lg) on the flocculation of hydrocarbon oil droplets was measured at pH 3 and compared with that at pH 7. Oil-in-water emulsions (5 wt % n-hexadecane, 0.5 wt % beta-Lg, pH 3.0) were prepared that contained different levels of salt (0-150 mM NaCl) added immediately after homogenization. The mean particle diameter (d43) and particle size distribution of diluted emulsions were measured by laser diffraction when they were either (i) stored at 30 degrees C for 48 h or (ii) subjected to different thermal treatments (30-95 degrees C for 20 min). In the absence of salt, little droplet flocculation was observed at pH 3 or 7 because of the strong electrostatic repulsion between the droplets. In the presence of 150 mM NaCl, a progressive increase in mean particle size with time was observed in pH 7 emulsions during storage at 30 degrees C, but no significant change in mean particle diameter with time (d43 approximately 1.4 +/- 0.2 microm) was observed in the pH 3 emulsions. Droplet aggregation became more extensive in pH 7 emulsions containing salt (added before thermal processing) when they were heated above 70 degrees C, which was attributed to thermal denaturation of adsorbed beta-Lg leading to interdroplet disulfide bond formation. In contrast, the mean particle size decreased and the creaming stability improved when pH 3 emulsions were heated above 70 degrees C. These results suggest that the droplets in the pH 3 emulsions were weakly flocculated at temperatures below the thermal denaturation temperature of beta-Lg (T < 70 degrees C) but that flocs did not form so readily above this temperature, which was attributed to a reduction in droplet surface hydrophobicity due to protein conformational changes. The most likely explanation for the difference in behavior of the emulsions is that disulfide bond formation occurs much more readily at pH 7 than at pH 3.     

Effect of pH on thermal- and chemical-induced denaturation of GFP

Green fluorescent protein (GFP) is an unusually stable autofluorescent protein that is increasingly being exploited for many applications. In this report, we have used fluorescence spectroscopy to study the effect of pH on the denaturation of GFP with sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), urea, and heat. Surprisingly, SDS (up to 0.5%) did not have any significant effect on the fluorescence of GFP at pH 7.5 or 8.5 buffers; however, at pH 6.5, the protein lost all fluorescence within 1 min of incubation. Similarly, incubation of GFP with 8 M urea at 50°C resulted in time dependent denaturation of GFP, but only in pH 6.5 buffer. At higher pH values (pH 7.5 and pH 8.5), the GFP was quite stable in 8 M urea at 50°C, showing only a slight decrease in fluorescence. Heat denaturation of GFP was found to be pH dependent as well, with the denaturation being fastest at pH 6.5 as compared to pH 7.5 or pH 8.5. Like the denaturation studies, renaturation of heat-denatured GFP was most efficient at pH 8.5, followed by pH 7.5, and then pH 6.5. These results suggests that GFP undergoes a structural/stability shift between pH 6.5 and pH 7.5, with the GFP structure at pH 6.5 being very sensitive to denaturation by SDS, urea, and heat.     

Improved hollow-fibre membranes for dye-affinity chromatography

Hollow-fibre membranes with different degrees of surface hydrophilicity were obtained by grafting mixtures of glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) and dimethyl acrylamide (DMAA) in various proportions, and Cibacron Blue F3G-A was attached to them through ammonia or glucamine spacers. Membrane hydrophilicity increased with the amount of dimethyl acrylamide in the grafted polymer. As the hydrophilicity increased the permeability decreased from 352 mL/cm2 min MPa for membranes grafted with GMA with ammonia spacer to 12.7 mL/cm2 min MPa for membranes grafted with GMA/DMAA 1/3 with glucamine spacer. Membranes grafted with GMA/DMAA 1/3 with ammonia spacer showed the best performance for BSA and lysozyme adsorption: maximum capacity was 15.3 +/- 2.2 mg BSA/mL membrane and 58.3 +/- 6.6 mg lysozyme/mL membrane while dissociation constants were 0.27 +/- 0.16 and 0.13 +/- 0.12 mg/mL, respectively. Over 80% of adsorbed proteins could be eluted with 2 M NaCl + 20% isopropanol in 20 mM sodium phosphate buffer, pH 7.0.     

Thermal stability of recombinant green fluorescent protein (GFPuv) at various pH values

The thermal stability of the recombinant green fluorescent protein (GFPuv) expressed by Escherichia coli cells and isolated by three-phase partitioning extraction with hydrophobic interaction chromatography was studied. The GFPuv (3.5–9.0 μg of GFPuv/mL) was exposed to various pH conditions (4.91–9.03) and temperatures (75–95°C) in the 10 mM buffers: acetate (pH 5.0–7.0), phosphate (pH 5.5–8.0), and Tris-HCl (pH 7.0–9.0). The extent of protein denaturation (loss of fluorescence intensity) was expressed in decimal reduction time (D-value), the time exposure required to reduce 90% of the initial fluorescence intensity of GFPuv. For pH 7.0 to 8.0, the thermostability of GFPuv was slightly greater in phosphate buffer than in Tris-HCl. At 85°C, the D-values (pH 7.1–7.5) ranged from 7.24 (Tris-HCl) to 13.88 min (phosphate) The stability of GFPuv in Tris-HCl (pH>8.0) was constant at 90 and 95°C, and the D-values were 7.93 (pH 8.38–8.92) and 6.0 min (pH 8.05–8.97), respectively. The thermostability of GFPuv provides the basis for its potential utility as a fluorescent biologic indicator to assay the efficacy of moist-heat treatments at temperatures lower than 100°C.     

The effect of Trp83 mutant on the properties of CopC

CopC, a protein involved in copper resistance, is essentially constituted by two sheets forming a Greek key beta barrel motif. The aromatic ring of Trp83, sandwiched between the two beta sheets, has numerous contacts with residues in strands beta and stabilizes the protein fold. In the paper Trp83 was mutated to Leu to study the effect of this mutation on CopC by means of fluorescence spectra and UV spectra. The experiments indicate that the mutation bind Cu(2+) with a decreased formation constant of 3.95 x 10(11) M(-1) in 20 mM PB buffer at pH 7.0; mutagenesis make hydrophobic region to be exposed to an extent. Compared with the wild, thermal stability of the mutant was shown to decrease by stronger fluorescence of TNS at 80 degrees C. The important role of aromatic residue in structure is exhibited.     

Influence of environmental stresses on stability of oil-in-water emulsions containing droplets stabilized by beta-lactoglobulin-iota-carrageenan membranes

An oil-in-water emulsion (5 wt% corn oil, 0.5 wt% beta-lactoglobulin (beta-Lg), 0.1 wt% iota-carrageenan, 5 mM phosphate buffer, pH 6.0) containing anionic droplets stabilized by interfacial membranes comprising of beta-lactoglobulin and iota-carrageenan was produced using a two-stage process. A primary emulsion containing anionic beta-Lg coated droplets was prepared by homogenizing oil and emulsifier solution together using a high-pressure valve homogenizer. A secondary emulsion containing beta-Lg-iota-carrageenan coated droplets was formed by mixing the primary emulsion with an aqueous iota-carrageenan solution. The stability of primary and secondary emulsions to sodium chloride (0-500 mM), calcium chloride (0-12 mM), and thermal processing (30-90 degrees C) were analyzed using zeta-potential, particle size and creaming stability measurements. The secondary emulsion had better stability to droplet aggregation than the primary emulsion at NaCl 相似文献   

Chemical stability of midazolam injection by high performance liquid chromatography

The chemical stability of midazolam hydrochloride injection, undiluted or diluted with dextrose sterile solution, was studied at different storage conditions by LC. The study was performed at room temperature (23 +/- 2 degrees C) under light exposure and light protection, +8 +/- 1 degrees C and -20 +/- 0.5 degrees C, in glass and plastic containers over 14 days with midazolam hydrochloride injection, undiluted or diluted with 5% dextrose sterile solution. Chromatographic separation was carried out on a RP-18(e) column, using a mobile phase consisting of ACN-phosphate buffer (pH 3.3; 0.1 M) (30:70 v/v) at a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min and UV detection at 220 nm. The concentrations of all samples remained greater than 90% of the original concentration. The chromatographic assay exhibited an adequate linearity (r(2) >0.999), selectivity, precision (RSD <3.1), and accuracy (recoveries from 100.46 to 101.40%). Injectable midazolam hydrochloride was chemically stable in all conditions that were studied.     

Chiral capillary electrophoretic determination of the enantiomeric purity of homocamptothecin derivatives, promising antitumor topoisomerase I inhibitors, using highly sulfated CDs and fluorescence detection

EKC methods for the enantiomeric resolution of homocamptothecin derivatives, potent anticancer agents targeting DNA topoisomerase I selected for clinical trials, were developed using highly sulfated beta-CD as chiral selectors at acidic pH. Optimal electrophoretic conditions, with migration times under 15 min, were as follows: for the neutral homocamptothecin analog 1, a BGE of 75 mM phosphate buffer pH 2.5 (H(3)PO(4) + triethanolamine)/ACN - 95/5 v/v, with 7.5% w/v highly S-beta-CD, an applied field of 0.2 kV/cm and a fused capillary temperature control of 30 +/- 0.1 degrees C (typical current approximately 175 microA); for the cationic homocamptothecin 2, a BGE of 25 mM phosphate buffer pH 2.5 (H(3)PO(4) + TEA)/ACN - 90/10 v/v, with 2.5% w/v highly S-beta-CD, an applied field of 0.15 kV/cm and a fused capillary temperature control of 25 +/- 0.1 degrees C (typical current approximately 45 muA), and both are validated. The best results in terms of LOQ were obtained by EC with fluorescence detection: 10 ng/mL and 20 ng/mL for 1 and 2, respectively (LOQ divided by 150 for 1 and 5 for 2 with respect to UV), thus making this method particularly convenient for enantiomeric purity determination of galenic forms. UV detection appears to be an alternative to fluorescence for the analysis of the main component either for the control of galenic forms or for therapeutic adaptation. Moreover, this method exhibits better performances than HPLC.     

The Determination of Folic Acid (Pteroylmonoglutamic Acid) in Fortified Products by Reversed Phase High Pressure Liquid Chromatography

Abstract

A reversed phase HPLC method was developed for the separation and determination of pteroylglutamic acid (PGA) in fortified foods. Extraction was carried out by heating with phosphate-citrate buffer, pH 8.0 containing ascorbate, and incubation with papain at 40°C for 4 hrs. The extracts were purified and concentrated on a short DEAE column which was rinsed with phosphate buffer, pH 7.0, of increasing molarity. PGA was eluted with 0.1M phosphate buffer, pH 7.0, containing 0.5M NaCl. The eluants were chromatographed on a Spherisorb ODS 10 μm column (250 × 4.6 mm) using a 30 min linear gradient of 2% to 30% acetonitrile in 0.1M acetate buffer, pH 4.0, at 1 ml/min and an absorbance detector at 280 nm. The coefficients of variation on analysis of 8 replicate samples of a milk and soy protein based infant formulas were 5.9% (at 4.6 ng/50 μl inject) and 6.8% (at 1.8 ng/50 μl inject) respectively.     

Confinement Effect of Organic Nanotubes Toward Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP) Depending on the Inner Diameter Size

Transportation, release behavior, and stability of a green fluorescent protein (GFP, 3×4 nm) in self‐assembled organic nanotubes with three different inner diameters (10, 20, and 80 nm) have been studied in terms of novel nanocontainers. Selective immobilization of a fluorescent acceptor dye on the inner surface enabled us to not only visualize the transportation of GFP in the nanochannels but to also detect release of the encapsulated GFP to the bulk solution in real time, based on fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET). Obtained diffusion constants and release rates of GFP markedly decreased as the inner diameter of the nanotubes was decreased. An endo‐sensing procedure also clarified the dependence of the thermal and chemical stabilities of the GFP on the inner diameters. The GFP encapsulated in the 10 nm nanochannel showed strong resistance to heat and to a denaturant. On the other hand, the 20 nm nanochannel accelerated the denaturation of the encapsulated GFP compared with the rate of denaturation of the free GFP in bulk and the encapsulated GFP in the 80 nm nanochannels. The confinement effect based on rational fitting of the inner diameter to the size of GFP allowed us to store it stably and without denaturation under high temperatures and high denaturant concentrations.     

高效凝胶过滤色谱法分离测定豆薯种子蛋白

用高效凝胶蛋白往分离豆薯种子蛋白租提液,结合光电二极管阵列检测器对分离的蛋白峰进行紫外光谱扫描来确认蛋白的纯度,测定了3种蛋白的分子量,采用邻苯二甲醛（OPA）柱后衍生法测定了豆薯种子蛋白的氨基酸含量。     

A rapid and simple high-performance liquid chromatography method for the determination of human plasma levofloxacin concentration and its application to bioequivalence studies

A high-performance liquid chromatography method with fluorescence detection (HPLC-FLD) for the determination of levofloxacin in human plasma is described. Neutralized with phosphate buffer (pH 7.0), the sample (0.1 mL) was extracted with dichlormethane (1 mL). After voltex-mixing and centrifuged at 3000g for 6 min at 4 degrees C, the upper aqueous layer was aspirated using a micro vacuum pump and the organic layer was directly transferred to a clean test tube without pipetting. The organic solvent was evaporated and the residues were reconstituted with the mobile phase. Levofloxacin and terazosin (internal standard, IS) were chromatographically separated on a C(18) column with a mobile phase containing phosphate buffer (pH 3.0, 10 mm), acetonitrile and triethylamine (76:24:0.076, v/v/v) at a flow rate of 1 mL/min. The analytes were detected using fluorescence detection at an excitation and emission wavelength of 295 and 440 nm, respectively. The linear range of the calibration curves was 0.0521-5.213 microg/mL for levofloxacin with a lower limit of quantitation (0.0521 microg/mL). The retention times of levofloxacin and terazosin were 2.5 and 3.1 min, respectively. Within- and between-run precision was less than 12 and 11%, respectively. Accuracy ranged from -6.3 to 4.5%. The recovery ranged from 86 to 89% at the concentrations of 0.0521, 0.5213 and 5.213 microg/mL. The present HPLC-FLD method is sensitive, efficient and reliable. The method described herein has been successfully used for the pharmacokinetic and bioequivalence studies of a levofloxacin formulation product after oral administration to healthy Chinese volunteers.     

Column-switching high-performance liquid chromatographic determination of clarithromycin in human plasma with electrochemical detection

A column-switching HPLC method was described for the direct analysis of clarithromycin in human plasma using electrochemical detector without sample pre-purification step. Plasma samples were diluted with washing solvent, i.e. acetonirile-methanol-0.05 M potassium phosphate buffer (pH 7.0) (5:2:93, v/v) and then, injected to the precolumn. After plasma proteins had flowed out from the precolumn, clarithromycin and internal standard (roxithromycin) were eluted to a Luna 2 C(18) column and separated with acetonitrile-methanol-0.05 M potassium phosphate buffer (pH 7.0) (41:6:53, v/v). Electrochemical oxidation of clarithromycin occurred at 0.87 V vs. Ag/AgCl reference electrode with glassy carbon electrode. The calibration curve was linear in the concentration range 0.1-4 mug ml(-1) with correlation coefficient of 0.998. This method showed excellent precision (RSD 3.8% at 0.1 mug ml(-1)) and accuracy (+/-2%) with the total analysis time per sample of 30 min. The present method was successfully applied to the pharmacokinetic study of clarithromycin in volunteers receiving a single oral administration of clarithromycin.     

Screening of drug metabolism by CE

The use of CE for rapid assessment of metabolic stability of drugs with cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes, based on relative rates of reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) consumption and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADP) production, was investigated. The separation conditions were as follows: capillary, 80.5 cm (75 microm id, 72 cm effective length for UV detection, 58 cm effective length for fluorescence detection); 25 mM sodium phosphate buffer (pH 8.8); 28 kV (80 microA) applied voltage; UV, 260 nm; fluorescence detection, excitation wavelength, 310 nm, emission wavelength, 418 nm; capillary temperature, 25 degrees C. For UV detection, the incubation conditions were as follows: CYP3A4: 20 pmol/mL; NADPH: 1 mM; EDTA: 1 mM; concentration of the substrate: 5-10 times its reported literature K(m) value; temperature: 37 degrees C; incubation time: 15 min. For fluorescence detection, the concentrations were reduced to CYP3A4: 4 pmol/mL, NADPH: 20 microM, EDTA: 20 microM and substrate: 10 microM. Blank incubations were performed in the absence of substrate. Compared with the blank, significant differences were found for the consumption of NADPH and the production of NADP. The development of this assay system allows rapid assessment of metabolic stability relative to standard compounds, as well as potential identification of the major CYP involved in the metabolism. It would reduce the backlog of compounds that require LC/MS analysis, and thereby expedite the process of metabolic stability screening.     

Optimized determination of thiochrome derivatives of thiamine and thiamine phosphates in whole blood by reversed-phase liquid chromatography with precolumn derivatization

A liquid chromatographic method involving precolumn derivatization for determining thiamine and its phosphate esters in human blood has been optimized. Blood sample stored at - 20 degrees C were haemolysed and deproteinized by perchloric acid. The supernatants of the samples were oxidized by addition of potassium ferricyanide-sodium hydroxide, and phosphoric acid was added to obtain a neutral pH in order to extend the column life. The samples were stable after derivatization for at least 24 h, if protected from light and kept at room temperature. Gradient separation with 140 mmol phosphate buffer (pH 7.0), and methanol, tert-butylammonium hydroxide and dimethylformamide as modifiers, on a 3-microns Chromsphere octadecylsilica column gave an analysis time of 15 min. The method was found to be very suitable for the determination of thiamine components in whole blood. The minimal detectable amount is 0.5 nmol/l and the method is linear to at least 1000 nmol/l. The recovery (98 +/- 3%) and precision are very good.     

Electrochemical determination of minoxidil in different pharmaceutical formulations by flow injection analysis.

The electrochemical behavior and amperometric-FIA quantification of minoxidil at a glassy carbon electrode is described. The procedure is based on electrochemical oxidation at 0.800 V (vs. Ag/AgCl/NaCl(3 M) in a phosphate buffer solution. Minoxidil was determined over the range 1 x 10(-7) - 1 x 10(-4) M. Different analytical parameters and electrode stability were analyzed to obtain the best electrode performance. The optimal conditions were: working potentials, 0.800 V; flow rate, 0.74 mL min(-1); and solution pH 7.0. This system allowed a sampling rate of 120 samples per hour without any pretreatment. The proposed method was used for minoxidil quantification in pharmaceutical preparations with satisfactory results. The accuracy of FIA-amperometric method was established by a comparison with the conventional UV determination technique using a paired t-test indicating the absence of systematic errors.     

Reversed-phase liquid chromatographic retention and membrane activity relationships of local anesthetics

The chromatographic retention and membrane activity relationships of local anesthetics were studied to address the possible mechanisms for structure specificity and inflammation-associated decrease of their effects. Five representative drugs (3 mM for each) were reacted with 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine liposomes in 25 mM potassium phosphate buffer (pH 5.9-7.9, containing 100 mM NaCl and 0.1 mM EDTA) for 10 min at 37 degrees C and the membrane fluidity changes were analyzed by measuring fluorescence polarization with 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene. Their capacity factors were determined on octadecyl-, octyl- and phenyl-bonded silica columns with a mobile phase consisting of 25 mM potassium phosphate buffer (pH 5.9-7.9, containing 100 mM NaCl and 0.1 mM EDTA)-methanol (30:70, v/v) at a flow rate of 1.0 ml/min and at a column temperature of 37 degrees C and diode-array detection. Mepivacaine, prilocaine, lidocaine, ropivacaine and bupivacaine fluidized membranes in increasing order of intensity, which agreed with their clinical potency. The relative degree of membrane fluidization correlated with that of retention on an octadecyl stationary phase more significantly than the other phases. Both membrane-fluidizing effects and capacity factors decreased by lowering the reaction and mobile phase pH, being consistent with the hypothesis that anesthetic potency is reduced in inflammation because of tissue acidity. Reversed-phase liquid chromatography appears to be useful for estimating the structure-specific and pH-dependent membrane-fluidizing effects of local anesthetics.     

Kinetic nature of the thermal destabilization of LHCII macroaggregates

The main light-harvesting chl a/b pigment-protein complex of photosystem II (LHCII) in isolated state forms macroaggregates with different ultrastructure and lipid content [I. Simidjiev, V. Barzda, L. Mustardy, G. Garab, Anal. Biochem. 250 (1997) 169-175]. The thermodynamic stability of highly delipidated tightly bound LHCII macroaggregates is studied by differential scanning calorimetry and fluorescence spectroscopy. The calorimetric profile of LHCII is asymmetric, the denaturation transition is taking place at around 72 degrees C. A shoulder, which overlaps with the main denaturation transition, appears around 58 degrees C. The denaturation temperature strongly depends on the scanning rate indicating the kinetic nature of the thermal destabilization of LHCII macroaggregates. The fluorescence data prove that the thermal denaturation of LHCII is an irreversible and kinetically controlled process.