Tobacco protein separation by aqueous two-phase extraction

Tobacco has long been considered as a host to produce large quantity of high-valued recombinant proteins. However, dealing with large quantities of biomass is a challenge for downstream processing. Aqueous two-phase extraction (ATPE) has been widely used in purifying proteins from various sources. It is a protein-friendly process and can be scaled up easily. In this paper, ATPE was studied for its applicability to recombinant protein purification from tobacco with egg white lysozyme as the model protein. Separate experiments with poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-salt-tobacco extract and PEG-salt-lysozyme were carried out to determine the partition behavior of tobacco protein and lysozyme, respectively. Two-level fractional factorial designs were used to study the effects of factors such as, PEG molecular mass, PEG concentration, the concentration of phase forming salt, sodium chloride concentration and pH, on protein partitioning. The results showed that, among the studied systems, PEG-sodium sulfate system was most suitable for lysozyme purification. Detailed experiments were conducted by spiking lysozyme into the tobacco extract. The conditions with highest selectivity of lysozyme over native tobacco protein were determined using a response surface design. The purification factor was further improved by decreasing the phase ratio along the tie line corresponding to the phase compositions with the highest selectivity. Under selected conditions the lysozyme yield was predicted to be 87% with a purification factor of 4 and concentration factor of 14. From this study, ATPE was shown to be suitable for initial protein recovery and partial purification from transgenic tobacco.     

Human insulin and desamido human insulin isotherms in ethanol-water reversed phase systems

The multi-component isotherms for human insulin (HI) and desamido human insulin (dHI) over reversed phase packing (C18) and with 29.8% (w/w) ethanol-water as mobile phase have been determined experimentally. The isotherms of HI in ethanol-water differ from those obtained with the more commonly applied methanol-water and acetonitrile-water mobile phase, as described in this paper. The isotherm exhibits anti Langmuirian behavior and can be very well modeled by an anti Langmuir isotherm presented in this paper. The HI and dHI anti Langmuir isotherm are determined as: qHI = (8.4C(HI) + 3C(HI)CdHI)/(1 - 0.05C(HI) - 0.14CdHI + 0.04C(HI)CdHI) and qdHI = (11.4CdHI + 2C(HI)CdHI)/ (1 - 0.05C(HI) - 0.14CdHI + 0.04C(HI)CdHI)     

Behaviour and design considerations for continuous flow closed-open-closed liquid microchannels

This paper introduces a method of combining open and closed microchannels in a single component in a novel way which couples the benefits of both open and closed microfluidic systems and introduces interesting on-chip microfluidic behaviour. Fluid behaviour in such a component, based on continuous pressure driven flow and surface tension, is discussed in terms of cross sectional flow behaviour, robustness, flow-pressure performance, and its application to microfluidic interfacing. The closed-open-closed microchannel possesses the versatility of upstream and downstream closed microfluidics along with open fluidic direct access. The device has the advantage of eliminating gas bubbles present upstream when these enter the open channel section. The unique behaviour of this device opens the door to applications including direct liquid sample interfacing without the need for additional and bulky sample tubing.     

Capillary electrophoresis analysis of gentamicin sulphate with UV detection after pre-capillary derivatization with 1,2-phthalic dicarboxaldehyde and mercaptoacetic acid

A selective, sensitive, and rapid pre-capillary derivatization method for determination of the multicomponent aminoglycoside antibiotic gentamicin is described. The derivatization reagents 1,2-phthalic dicarboxaldehyde and mercaptoacetic acid were used and the thioisoindole derivative was UV detected at 330 nm. A central composite experimental design was performed to optimize selectivity and derivatization conditions. Baseline separation of gentamicin C1, C1a, C2, C2a, C2b, sisomicin and several minor components was achieved with a background electrolyte containing 30 mM sodium tetraborate, 7.5 mM beta-cyclodextrin and 12.5% (v/v) methanol at pH 10. Quantitative analysis was performed and illustrated the potential use of capillary electrophoresis for the identification and quantitation of gentamicin as an alternative to methods prescribed in the United States Pharmacopeia and European Pharmacopoeia.     

Recent advances in the determination of the platinum group elements and gold

Accurate determinations of the platinum group elements (PGEs) and gold, known as the precious metals, have always been difficult tasks. The metals are often present at trace levels in sample types of complex composition. This situation has improved recently due to developments of instrumental methods and their applications to analyses of the precious metals in a variety of matrices. Attention has been given to determinations of traces of precious metals in biological, clinical and environmental samples. Foremost in importance is inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) which has provided a sensitive means of simultaneous determination of traces of PGEs and gold. Important extensions and improvements in atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS), nuclear and electrochemical methods have been reported also. More research on sample treatments, especially fire assays, applied to PGEs has been carried out. Chlorination has proven to be a viable alternative to fire assays for preconcentration of PGEs and gold in analyses of geological materials. In addition, the recent availability of some additional reference materials will be of great assistance in research work on precious metals.     

Synthetically defined oligomers ofL-lysine as model compounds for adsorption studies

For investigations of adsorption of polymers onto surfaces, lysine oligomers of defined lengths were synthesized using standard methods of peptide chemistry. By repeated coupling of peptide derivatives of the same length, peptide chains up to 32 lysine residues were obtained. To suppress end effects theN-terminalα-amino group and the carboxyl group of each peptide were blocked with?-aminocaproyl- andN-methylamide functions respectively. Measurements of the optical rotation of blocked and charged deblocked oligo-L-lysines indicated that ordered structures are present in both forms.     

Polarographic analysis for corticosteroids: Part 4. Determination of Corticosteroids in Multicomponent and Complex Pharmaceutical Preparations

Differential pulse polarographic methods for determination of corticosteroids in multicomponent and complex pharmaceutical preparations are described. The influence of other reducible common components of such preparations and excipients on the height of the reduction peaks of corticosteroids and the accuracy of the results was investigated, as well as the interference of excipients by adsorption processes at the electrode or at solid particles of the preparations. In the procedures developed, variations in composition of the supporting electrolyte according to the lipophilicity of the preparation, and the use of standard additions, produce results quickly and reliably. Standard deviations vary from 0.8 to 2.8%.     

Photophysical properties of borondipyrromethene analogues in solution

The photophysical properties of seven new 8-(p-substituted)phenyl analogues of 4,4-difluoro-3,5-dimethyl-8-(aryl)-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene (derivatives of the well-known fluorophore BODIPY) in several solvents have been studied by means of absorption and steady-state and time-resolved fluorimetry. For each compound, the fluorescence quantum yield and lifetime are lower in solvents with higher polarity owing to an increase in the rate of nonradiative deactivation. Increasing the electron withdrawing strength of the p-substituent on the phenyl group in position 8 also leads to lower fluorescence quantum yields and lifetimes. When the p-substituent on the phenyl group in position 8 is a tertiary amine [8-(4-piperidinophenyl), 8-(4-N,N-dimethylaminophenyl), and 8-(4-morpholinophenyl)], the low quantum yields of these compounds in more polar solvents can be rationalized by the inversion of the energy levels of an apolar, highly fluorescent and a polar, nonfluorescent excited state, where charge transfer from the tertiary amine to the BODIPY unit occurs. These amine analogues can be protonated at low pH in aqueous solution. Fluorescence titrations yielded pK(a) values of their conjugate ammonium salts which are in agreement with the electron donating tendency of the amine group: piperidino (4.15) > dimethylamino (2.37) > morpholino (1.47), with the pK(a) values in parentheses. The rate constant of radiative deactivation (k(f)) is the same for all compounds in all solvents studied (k(f) = 1.4 x 10(8) s(-1)).