Aqueous Phase Size-exclusion

The non-uniform behaviour of proteins makes the measurement of their molecular mass difficult however, their rough estimation and purification are very important for biochemical research. Generally, phosphate buffer and tris-HC1 buffer (pH 7) are used for SEC for biological polymers, and some additives are required for further separation. Only 0.2 m sodium phosphate buffer was 

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Vinyl alcohol copolymer gel is hydrophilic and has been developed for aqueous-phase size-exclusion liquid chromatography however, it is less polar than the polysaccharides. Its specificity permits the direct injection of a biological sample without deproteinization. For example, blood serum from a patient suffering from chronic nephritis has been injected directly as a measure of the degree of dialysis (Figure 3.17). Adenosine triphosphate, adenosine diphosphate, and adenosine monophosphate in red blood cells have also been separated directly (Figure 3.18). Theophylline in blood serum has been... 

Non-ionic Reversed phase Affinity Ligand exchange Normal phase Size exclusion with aqueous... 

Conductivity detectors, commonly employed in ion chromatography, can be used to determine ionic materials at levels of parts per million (ppm) or parts per bUHon (ppb) in aqueous mobile phases. The infrared (ir) detector is one that may be used in either nonselective or selective detection. Its most common use has been as a detector in size-exclusion chromatography, although it is not limited to sec. The detector is limited to use in systems in which the mobile phase is transparent to the ir wavelength being monitored. It is possible to obtain complete spectra, much as in some gc-ir experiments, if the flow is not very high or can be stopped momentarily. 

Aqueous-detergent solutions of appropriate concentration and temperature can phase separate to form two phases, one rich in detergents, possibly in the form of micelles, and the other depleted of the detergent (Piyde and Phillips, op. cit.). Proteins distribute between the two phases, hydrophobic (e.g., membrane) proteins reporting to the detergent-rich phase and hydrophilic proteins to the detergent-free phase. Indications are that the size-exclusion properties of these systems can also be exploited for viral separations. These systems would be handled in the same way as the aqueous two-phase systems. 

This section discusses in detail the column types that are available for the size exclusion chromatography of both polar and nonpolar analytes. It first discusses the various columns available for standard nonaqueous size exclusion chromatography. It then reviews the columns available for general size exclusion chromatography using aqueous mobile phases. Finally, it examines the columns designed for size exclusion chromatography of proteins and peptides. 

For the size exclusion chromatography of proteins on silica-hased diol packings, it is generally recommended to use fully aqueous mobile phases with a salt concentration between 0.1 and 0.3 M. In general, a phosphate buffer around pH 7 is used as the mobile phase. Under these circumstances, the tertiary structure of most proteins is preserved without difficulty and the interaction of proteins with each other is minimized. However, other inorganic buffers or combinations of buffers with organic solvents can be used without difficulties for special applications. 

There are two types of stationary phases commonly used in exclusion chromatography silica gel and micro-reticulated cross-linked polystyrene gels. A third type of exclusion media is comprised of the Dextran gels. Dextran gels are produced by the action of certain bacteria on a sucrose substrate. They consist of framework of glucose units that can form a gel in aqueous solvents that have size exclusion properties. Unfortunately the gels are mechanically weak and thus, cannot tolerate the high pressures necessary for HPLC and, as a consequence, are of very limited use to the analyst. 

Exclusion chromatography is a technique for separating molecules based on their effective shape and bulkiness. The method is generally called size-exclusion chromatography (SEC). When the mobile phase is an organic solvent or a mixture of organic solvent, the technique is called gel permeation chromatography (GPC), in the case of aqueous mobile... 

One column can be used for different types of liquid chromatography by changing the eluent components. As an example, a column packed with octadecyl-bonded silica gel has been used for size-exclusion liquid chromatography with tetrahydrofuran (THF), normal-phase liquid chromatography with n-hexane, and reversed-phase liquid chromatography with aqueous acetonitrile. Examples of the chromatograms are shown in Figure 1.4. 

The elution volumes of polystyrene and benzene in the size-exclusion mode were 0.98 and 1.78 ml, respectively (Figure 1.4A). This means that separations by molecular size can be achieved between 0.98 and 1.78 ml in this system. In the normal phase mode the elution volumes of octylbenzene and benzene were 1.98 and 2.08 ml, respectively, in n-hexane solution (Figure 1.4B). This type of chromatography is called adsorption or non-aqueous reversed-phase liquid chromatography. These are adsorption liquid chromatography and non-aqueous reversed-phase liquid chromatography. The elution order of the alkylbenzenes in the reversed-phase mode using acetonitrile was reversed... 

The present experimental approach is based on the chromatographic advantages provided by the diol or glycerol derivatives of porous silica stationary phases available for use in HPLC. These have recently become available for estimating the molecular size of polyelectrolytes using aqueous size exclusion chromatography. The conditions for reproducible polyelectrolyte size measurements, and their possible purturbations have been summarized by Barth (8). 

In order to be exploitable for extraction and purification of proteins/enzymes, RMs should exhibit two characteristic features. First, they should be capable of solubilizing proteins selectively. This protein uptake is referred to as forward extraction. Second, they should be able to release these proteins into aqueous phase so that a quantitative recovery of the purified protein can be obtained, which is referred to as back extraction. A schematic representation of protein solubilization in RMs from aqueous phase is shown in Fig. 2. In a number of recent publications, extraction and purification of proteins (both forward and back extraction) has been demonstrated using various reverse micellar systems [44,46-48]. In Table 2, exclusively various enzymes/proteins that are extracted using RMs as well as the stability and conformational studies of various enzymes in RMs are summarized. The studies revealed that the extraction process is generally controlled by various factors such as concentration and type of surfactant, pH and ionic strength of the aqueous phase, concentration and type of CO-surfactants, salts, charge of the protein, temperature, water content, size and shape of reverse micelles, etc. By manipulating these parameters selective sepa-... 

Size exclusion chromatography (SEC), also called gel filtration when the mobile phase is aqueous, and gel permeation (GPC) when the mobile phase is organic, is based on the differing degrees of penetration of the sample molecules into the pores of the stationary phase (Fig. 7.1). These pores must have a diameter similar to the size of the species to be separated when these species are in solution in the mobile phase (Fig. 7.5). 

RA Williams, R Macrae, MJ Shepherd. Non-aqueous size-exclusion chromatography coupled online to reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography. Interface development and applications to the analysis of low-molecular weight contaminants andadditives in foods. J Chromatogr 477 315-325, 1989. 

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