Separation of oligogalacturonic acids by high-performance gel filtration chromatography on silica gel with diol radical.

Oligogalacturonic acids (OLGAs) ranging from two to nineteen residues in length were separated using high-performance gel filtration chromatography on a silica gel with diol radical. The optimum conditions (eluent, column temperature) for separation of OLGAs by high-performance gel filtration chromatography were investigated. The column used in this experiment allowed a high pressure of 4900 p.s.i. and a flow-rate of 2 ml/min. The stationary phase of silica gel stabilized the separation of OLGAs. The peaks of OLGAs separated using this column were assigned by comparing retention times with standards, and the molecular weights of the corresponding OLGAs were determined by fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry.