Stabilizing effect of amphiphilic excipients on the freeze-thawing and freeze-drying of lactate dehydrogenase

Stabilization effects of saccharides in protein formulations: A review of sucrose, trehalose, cyclodextrins and dextrans

Saccharides are a popular group of stabilizers in liquid, frozen and freeze dried protein formulations. The current work reviewed the stabilization mechanisms of three groups of saccharides: (i) Disaccharides, specifically sucrose and trehalose; (ii) cyclodextrins (CDs), a class of cyclic oligosaccharides; and (iii) dextrans, a class of polysaccharides. Compared to sucrose, trehalose exhibits a more pronounced preferential exclusion effect in liquid protein formulations, due to its stronger interaction with water molecules. However, trehalose obtains higher phase separation and crystallization propensity in frozen solutions, resulting in the loss of its stabilization function. In lyophilized formulations, sucrose has a higher crystallization propensity. Besides, its glass matrix is less homogeneous than that of trehalose, thus undermining its lyoprotectant function. Nevertheless, the hygroscopic nature of trehalose may result in high water absorption upon storage. Among all the CDs, the β form is believed to have stronger interactions with proteins than the α- and γ-CDs. However, the stabilization effect, brought about by CD-protein interactions, is case-by-case - in some examples, such interactions can promote protein destabilization. The stabilization effect of hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HPβCD) has been extensively studied. Due to its amphiphilic nature, it can act as a surface-active agent in preventing interfacial stresses. Besides, it is a dual functional excipient in freeze dried formulations, acting as an amorphous bulking agent and lyoprotectant. Finally, dextrans, when combined with sucrose or trehalose, can be used to produce stable freeze dried protein formulations. A strong stabilization effect can be realized by low molecular weight dextrans. However, the terminal glucose in dextrans yields protein glycation, which warrants extra caution during formulation development.

Application of Formulation Principles to Stability Issues Encountered During Processing, Manufacturing, and Storage of Drug Substance and Drug Product Protein Therapeutics

The field of formulation and stabilization of protein therapeutics has become rather extensive. However, most of the focus has been on stabilization of the final drug product. Yet, proteins experience stress and degradation through the manufacturing process, starting with fermentaition. This review describes how formulation principles can be applied to stabilize biopharmaceutical proteins during bioprocessing and manufacturing, considering each unit operation involved in prepration of the drug substance. In addition, the impact of the container on stabilty is discussed as well.

Preparation, Characterization, and Mechanism of Antifreeze Peptides from Defatted Antarctic Krill (Euphausia superba) on Lactobacillus rhamnosus

Defatted Antarctic krill powder is the main by-product in the manufacturing of krill oil. Exploring a high value-added approach for utilizing this protein-rich material has received much attention in research and industry. Given this, the preparation and primary characterization of antifreeze peptides from defatted Antarctic krill (AKAPs) were carried out in this study. The cryoprotective effect of AKAPs on Lactobacillus rhamnosus ATCC7469 was also investigated. The results showed that Protamex was the optimum protease for AKAP preparation from defatted Antarctic krill. AKAPs were found to be rich in short peptides, with the MW ranging from 600 to 2000 Da (69.2%). An amino acid composition analysis showed that AKAPs were rich in glutamic acid (18.71%), aspartic acid (12.19%), leucine (7.87%), and lysine (7.61%). After freezing, the relative survival rate of Lactobacillus rhamnosus in the 1.0 mg/mL AKAP-treated group (96.83%) was significantly higher than in the saline group (24.12%) (p < 0.05). AKAPs also retarded the loss of acidifying activity of L. rhamnosus after freezing. AKAPs showed even better cryoprotective activity than three commercial cryoprotectants (sucrose, skim milk, and glycerol). In addition, AKAPs significantly alleviated the decrease in β-galactosidase and lactic dehydrogenase activities of L. rhamnosus (p < 0.05). Furthermore, AKAPs effectively protected the integrity of L. rhamnosus cell membranes from freezing damage and alleviated the leakage of intracellular substances. These findings demonstrate that AKAPs can be a potential cryoprotectant for preserving L. rhamnosus, providing a new way to use defatted Antarctic krill.

Protection of Alcohol Dehydrogenase against Freeze-Thaw Stress by Ice-Binding Proteins Is Proportional to Their Ice Recrystallization Inhibition Property

Ice-binding proteins (IBPs) have ice recrystallization inhibition (IRI) activity. IRI property has been extensively utilized for the cryopreservation of different types of cells and tissues. Recent reports demonstrated that IRI can also play a significant role in protecting proteins from freezing damage during freeze-thaw cycles. In this study, we hypothesized that the protective capability of IBPs on proteins against freeze-thaw damage is proportional to their IRI activity. Hence we used two IBPs: one with higher IRI activity (LeIBP) and the other with lower activity (FfIBP). Yeast alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) was used as a freeze-labile model protein. IBPs and ADH were mixed, frozen at -20 °C, and thawed repeatedly. The structure of ADH was assessed using fluorescence emission spectra probed by 1-anilinonaphthalene-8-sulfonate over the repeated freeze-thaw cycles. The activity was monitored at 340 nm spectrophotometrically. Fluorescence data and activity clearly indicated that ADH without IBP was freeze-labile. However, ADH maintained about 70% residual activity after five repeated cycles at a minimal concentration of 0.1 mg mL^-1 of high IRI-active LeIBP, but only 50% activity at 4 mg mL^-1 of low active FfIBP. These results showed that the protection of proteins from freeze-thaw stress by IBPs is proportional to their IRI activity.

The Use of a Combination of a Sugar and Surfactant to Stabilize Au Nanoparticle Dispersion against Aggregation during Freeze-Drying

Drying a suspension of nanoparticles typically results in the irreversible aggregation of nanoparticles; however, solutions that contain unstable ingredients are often converted into dried powders to prolong their shelf lives. In this study, the use of a combination of a surface-active agent and sugar was investigated with regard to avoiding the aggregation of nanoparticles during drying. Suspensions of Au nanoparticles (∼60 nm diameter, AuNPs) were freeze-dried in the presence of different combinations of various sugars with a surfactant. Sucrose monopalmitate (SEC16) was mainly used as the surfactant, based on a comparison of antiaggregation effects conferred by various surfactants. The freeze-dried AuNP suspension was then reconstituted, and the avoidance of AuNP aggregation was then examined. The results demonstrated that the use of a combination of a small amount of SEC16 and sugar resulted in a greater redispersibility of AuNPs after freeze-drying than when the individual components were used. Repetition tests of freeze-drying and reconstitution were conducted. The sucrose/SEC16 mixture was freeze-dried on an electroless-plated Au film and then analyzed by infrared spectroscopy. Strong interactions between SEC16 and the Au surface were detected, and these interactions appear to play a crucial role in the antiaggregation of AuNPs during freeze-drying.

Protecting Enzymes from Stress-Induced Inactivation

The pharmaceutical and chemical industries depend on additives to protect enzymes and other proteins against stresses that accompany their manufacture, transport, and storage. Common stresses include vacuum-drying, freeze-thawing, and freeze-drying. The additives include sugars, compatible osmolytes, amino acids, synthetic polymers, and both globular and disordered proteins. Scores of studies have been published on protection, but the data have never been analyzed systematically. To spur efforts to understand the sources of protection and ultimately develop more effective formulations, we review ideas about the mechanisms of protection, survey the literature searching for patterns of protection, and then compare the ideas to the data.

Protecting activity of desiccated enzymes

Protein-based biological drugs and many industrial enzymes are unstable, making them prohibitively expensive. Some can be stabilized by formulation with excipients, but most still require low temperature storage. In search of new, more robust excipients, we turned to the tardigrade, a microscopic animal that synthesizes cytosolic abundant heat soluble (CAHS) proteins to protect its cellular components during desiccation. We find that CAHS proteins protect the test enzymes lactate dehydrogenase and lipoprotein lipase against desiccation-, freezing-, and lyophilization-induced deactivation. Our data also show that a variety of globular and disordered protein controls, with no known link to desiccation tolerance, protect our test enzymes. Protection of lactate dehydrogenase correlates, albeit imperfectly, with the charge density of the protein additive, suggesting an approach to tune protection by modifying charge. Our results support the potential use of CAHS proteins as stabilizing excipients in formulations and suggest that other proteins may have similar potential.

Efficient synthesis of amino acid polymers for protein stabilization

Poly-l-glutamate exerts substantial protein stabilization during lyophilization by preventing protein aggregation.

Spray-Freeze Drying: a Suitable Method for Aerosol Delivery of Antibodies in the Presence of Trehalose and Cyclodextrins

We aimed to prepare spray-freeze-dried powder of IgG considering physicochemical stability and aerodynamic aspects. Spray-freeze drying (SFD) exposes proteins to various stresses which should be compensated by suitable stabilizers. The competence of cyclodextrins (CDs), namely beta-cyclodextrin (βCD) and hydroxypropyl βCD (HPβCD), at very low concentrations, was investigated in the presence of separate mannitol- and trehalose-based formulations. Spray-freeze-dried preparations were quantified in terms of monomer recovery and conformation by size exclusion chromatography (SEC-HPLC) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, respectively. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and X-ray diffractometry (XRD) were employed to identify the thermal characteristics of powders. Particle morphology was visualized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Aerodynamic behavior of powders was checked through an Anderson cascade impactor (ACI). Although all formulations protected antibody from aggregation during the SFD process (aggregation < 1%), mannitol-containing ones failed upon the storage (19.54% in the worst case). Trehalose-HPβCD incomparably preserved the formulation with fine particle fraction (FPF) of 51.29%. Crystallization of mannitol resulted in IgG destabilization upon storage. Although employed concentration of CDs is too low (less than 50:1 molar ratio to protein), they successfully served as stabilizing agents in SFD with perfect improvement in aerosol functionality. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

Trehalose Mediated Inhibition of Lactate Dehydrogenase from Rabbit Muscle. The Application of Kramers' Theory in Enzyme Catalysis

Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) catalyzes the reduction of pyruvate to lactate by using NADH. LDH kinetics has been proposed to be dependent on the dynamics of a loop over the active site. Kramers' theory has been useful in the study of enzyme catalysis dependent on large structural dynamics. In this work, LDH kinetics was studied in the presence of trehalose and at different temperatures. In the absence of trehalose, temperature increase raised exponentially the LDH V_max and revealed a sigmoid transition of K_m toward a low-affinity state similar to protein unfolding. Notably, LDH V_max diminished when in the presence of trehalose, while pyruvate affinity increased and the temperature-mediated binding site transition was hindered. The effect of trehalose on k_cat was viscosity dependent as described by Kramers' theory since V_max correlated inversely with the viscosity of the medium. As a result, activation energy ( E_a) for pyruvate reduction was dramatically increased by trehalose presence. This work provides experimental evidence that the dynamics of a structural component in LDH is essential for catalysis, i.e., the closing of the loop on the active site. While the trehalose mediated-increased of pyruvate affinity is proposed to be due to the compaction and/or increase of structural order at the binding site.

Oligosaccharide-based Surfactant/Citric Acid Buffer System Stabilizes Lactate Dehydrogenase during Freeze-drying and Storage without the Addition of Natural Sugar

Experiments were conducted to assess the maintenance effects of oligosaccharide-based surfactants on the enzymatic activity of a model protein, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), during freeze-drying and room temperature storage using the citric acid buffer system. Oligosaccharide-based surfactants, which exhibit a high glass transition temperature (Tg), promoted the eminent retention of enzymatic activity during these protocols, whereas monosaccharide-based surfactants with a low Tg displayed poor performance at high concentration, albeit much better than that of Tween 80 at middle concentration. The increase in the alkyl chain length did not exert positive effects as observed for the maintenance effect during freeze-thawing, but an amphiphilic nature and a glass forming ability were crucial for the effective stabilization at a low excipient concentration during freeze-drying. Even a low oligosaccharide-based surfactant content (0.1 mg mL(-1)) could maintain LDH activity during freeze-drying, but a high surfactant content (1.0 mg mL(-1)) was required to prevent buffer precipitation and retain high LDH activity on storage. Regarding storage, glass formation restricted molecular mobility in the lyophilized matrix, and LDH activity was effectively retained. The present results describe a strategy based on the glass-forming ability of surfactant-type excipients that affords a natural sugar-free formulation or an alternative use for polysorbate-type surfactants.

Protein stabilization by cyclodextrins in the liquid and dried state

Aggregation is arguably the biggest challenge for the development of stable formulations and robust manufacturing processes of therapeutic proteins. In search of novel excipients inhibiting protein aggregation, cyclodextrins and their derivatives have been under examination for use in parenteral protein products since more than 20 years and significant research work has been accomplished highlighting the great potential of cyclodextrins as stabilizers of therapeutic proteins. Oftentimes, the potential of cyclodextrins to inhibit protein aggregation has been attributed to their capability to incorporate hydrophobic residues on aggregation-prone proteins or on their partially unfolded intermediates into the hydrophobic cavity. In addition, also other mechanisms besides or even instead of complex formation play a role in the stabilization mechanism, e.g. non-ionic surfactant-like effects. In this review a comprehensive overview of the available research work on the beneficial use of cyclodextrins and their derivatives in protein formulations, liquid as well as dried, is provided. The mechanisms of stabilization against different kinds of stress conditions, such as thermal or surface-induced, are discussed in detail.

Effects of cryoprotectants on viability of Lactobacillus reuteri CICC6226

Freeze-drying is commonly used to preserve probiotics, but it could cause cell damage and loss of viability. The cryoprotectants play an important role in the conservation of viability during freeze-drying. In this study, we investigated the survival rates of Lactobacillus reuteri CICC6226 in the presence of cryoprotectants such as sucrose, trehalose, and reconstituted skim milk (RSM). In addition, we determined the activities of hexokinase (HK), pyruvate kinase (PK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), and ATPases immediately following the freeze-drying. The results showed that the differences in HK and PK activities with and without the cryoprotectants during freeze-drying were not significant, but cell viability and activities of LDH and ATPase were significantly different (P<0.01) prior to and after freeze-drying. Meanwhile, the results showed that the maintenance of the membrane integrity and fluidity was improved in the presence of the 10% trehalose or 10% RSM than other treatments during freeze-drying. These results have provided direct biochemical and metabolic evidence of injured cell during freeze-drying. Freeze-drying damaged membrane structure and function of cell and inactivated enzymes (LDH and ATPases). The results imply that LDH and ATPases are key markers and could be used to evaluate the effect of cryoprotectants on viability and metabolic activities of L. reuteri CICC6226 during freeze-drying.

State diagrams for improving processing and storage of foods, biological materials, and pharmaceuticals (IUPAC Technical Report)

Supplemented temperature/composition phase diagrams include the non-equilibrium glass-transition temperature (Tg) curve and equilibrium ice-melting and solubility curves. The inclusion of the non-equilibrium curve allows one to establish relationships with the time coordinate and, thus, with the dynamic behavior of systems, provided that the thermal history of such systems is known. The objective of this report is to contribute to the potential applications of supplemented state diagrams for aqueous glass-formers, in order to describe the influence of water content, nature of vitrifying agents, and temperature on the physico-chemical properties of foods and biological and pharmaceutical products. These data are helpful to develop formulations, processing strategies, or storage procedures in order to optimize the stability of food ingredients and pharmaceutical formulations. Reported experimental data on phase and state transitions for several food and pharmaceutical systems were analyzed. Some methodological aspects and the effect of phase and state transitions on the main potential chemical reactions that can alter those systems during processing and/or storage are discussed.

Protein stability during freezing: separation of stresses and mechanisms of protein stabilization

Although proteins are often frozen during processing or freeze-dried after formulation to improve their stability, they can undergo degradation leading to losses in biological activity during the process. During freezing, the physical environment of a protein changes dramatically leading to the development of stresses that impact protein stability. Low temperature, freeze-concentration, and ice formation are the three chief stresses resulting during cooling and freezing. Because of the increase in solute concentrations, freeze-concentration could also facilitate second order reactions, crystallization of buffer or non-buffer components, phase separation, and redistribution of solutes. An understanding of these stresses is critical to the determination of when during freezing a protein suffers degradation and therefore important in the design of stabilizer systems. With the exception of a few studies, the relative contribution of various stresses to the instability of frozen proteins has not been addressed in the freeze-drying literature. The purpose of this review is to describe the various stages of freezing and examine the consequences of the various stresses developing during freezing on protein stability and to assess their relative contribution to the destabilization process. The ongoing debate on thermodynamic versus kinetic mechanisms of stabilization in frozen environments and the current state of knowledge concerning those mechanisms are also reviewed in this publication. An understanding of the relative contributions of freezing stresses coupled with the knowledge of cryoprotection mechanisms is central to the development of more rational formulation and process design of stable lyophilized proteins.

Study of the Individual Contributions of Ice Formation and Freeze-Concentration on Isothermal Stability of Lactate Dehydrogenase during Freezing

The objective of this study was to determine the individual contributions of ice formation, solute concentration, temperature, and time, to irreversible protein denaturation during freezing. A temperature-step approach was used to study isothermal degradation of frozen lactate dehydrogenase (LDH). The freeze-concentrate composition was determined using differential scanning calorimetry to enable preparation of solutions, without ice, of the same concentration as the freeze-concentrate, and thereby determine the role of the freeze-concentrate composition on LDH degradation. Both stabilizers employed in the study, hydroxyethyl starch and sucrose, conferred cryoprotection on LDH. While LDH stability was lower at 1.50-3.25% w/v sucrose than in the absence of sucrose, cryoprotection was restored at higher sucrose concentrations. pH shift during freezing, degree of supercooling, and excipient impurities were ruled out as causes for unusual LDH stability behavior at lower sucrose concentrations. Specific surface area measurements of the freeze-dried cakes showed that the ice surface area increased with an increase in sucrose concentration. No LDH degradation occurred in concentrated solutions, without ice, at the same composition as the freeze-concentrate in frozen systems where massive degradation was documented. Thus, ice formation is the critical destabilizing factor during freezing of LDH in sucrose:citrate buffer systems.

Effects of various cyclodextrins on the stability of freeze‐dried lactate dehydrogenase

The effects of eight cyclodextrins (CDs) on the stability of freeze-dried lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) were investigated. Five low-molecular weight saccharides were used as a reference. In the samples without saccharides, LDH activity was decreased by freeze-drying. The LDH activities of the samples with 2-hydroxypropylated CDs (HP-CDs) such as 2-hydroxypropyl-beta-cyclodextrin (HP-beta-CD) showed only a small decrease and were more effective protein stabilizers than low-molecular weight saccharides. HP-beta-CD more effectively stabilized LDH than trehalose, at a sugar concentration of less than 1.0 w/w% and furthermore, a close relationship existed between the highly stabilizing effect and the degree of substitution of polar substituents.

Quantitative analysis in nanoliter wells by prefilling of wells using electrospray deposition followed by sample introduction with a coverslip method

In contrast to performing assays on a substrate using immobilization techniques, wet analysis in nanoliter-sized wells allows quantitative monitoring of enzyme-based reactions by measuring luminescence with time. However, a suitable dispensing method is required to accurately deposit stabilized enzyme solutions into nanoliter wells in such a manner that the enzyme activities are preserved prior to and during measurements. Furthermore, an efficient method is required to add sample liquid to these wells in such a manner that evaporation of assay liquid is completely prevented during sample introduction and monitoring. A powerful methodology is presented in this paper allowing quantitative analysis of enzyme-based reactions in identical nanoliter volumes on-chip. In a first step, picoliter amounts of protein solutions are deposited as uniform dry dots into wells using our reported electrospraying technique (Moerman, R.; Frank, J.; Marijnissen, J. C. M.; Schalkhammer, T. G. M.; van Dedem, G. W. K. Anal. Chem. 2001, 73, 2183-2189.). The silicon chips are then stored at temperatures as low as -80 degrees C. At the time of analysis, a sample solution is slid into the wells using a coverslip. With the edge of the coverslip, sample solution is pushed across the wells at a speed of 1.5-2.5 cm/s to prevent carryover of reagents to neighboring wells. Evaporation of assay liquid from the wells is prevented because the coverslip seals the wells and "bonds" to the chip by adhesion forces. Electrospraying appears to be an excellent method to deposit enzyme solutions containing up to 20% (w/v) of trehalose without being hampered by clogging of the capillary or splashing of droplets. After being sprayed on-chip (silicon nitride), the enzymes pyruvate kinase and lactate dehydrogenase remained stable for a period of 1.5-2 months at a storage temperature of -20 degrees C. The coverslip method completely prevented evaporation for minutes up to hours allowing monitoring of enzyme-based reactions in arrays of nanoliter wells.

Investigation of Drying Stresses on Proteins during Lyophilization: Differentiation between Primary and Secondary-Drying Stresses on Lactate Dehydrogenase Using a Humidity Controlled Mini Freeze-Dryer

This article describes the design, performance testing, and application of a controlled humidity mini-freeze-dryer in studying the physical stability of lactate dehydrogenase during lyophilization. Performance evaluation of the mini-freeze-dryer was conducted with tests, namely water sublimation, radiation heat exchange, lowest achievable temperature, and leak testing. Protein stability studies were conducted by comparing protein activity at various stages of lyophilization with the initial activity. The shelf and condenser temperature were stable at <-40 degrees C, wall temperature was within 2 degrees C of the shelf temperature, and the leak rate was small. The chamber pressure was controlled by the ice on the condenser and the product temperature during sublimation was equal to the shelf temperature. Addition of Tween 80 prevented activity loss in solution and after freeze-thaw. No activity loss was observed after primary-drying even in absence of lyoprotectants and with collapse of cake structure. Five percent (w/w) sucrose concentration was required to achieve full stabilization. In conclusion, performance testing established that the mini-freeze-dryer was suitable for mechanistic freeze-drying studies. Secondary-drying was the critical step for protein stability. The concentration of sucrose required to stabilize the protein completely was several orders of magnitude higher than that required to satisfy the direct interaction requirement of the protein.

Effects of Tween 20® and Tween 80® on the Stability of Albutropin During Agitation

The objectives of this work were to determine the effects of nonionic surfactants (Tween 20 and Tween 80) on agitation-induced aggregation of the recombinant fusion protein, Albutropintrade mark (human growth hormone genetically fused to human albumin), and to characterize the binding interactions between the surfactants and the protein. Knowing the binding stoichiometry would allow a rational choice of surfactant concentration to protect the protein from surface-induced aggregation. Fluorescence spectroscopy and isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) were employed to study Albutropin surfactant binding. Albutropin was agitated at 25 +/- 2 degrees C to induce aggregation, and samples were taken during a 96-h incubation. Size-exclusion chromatography (SEC-HPLC) (HPLC, high-performance liquid chromatography) was used to detect and quantify the extent of protein aggregation. The effect of surfactants on the protein's free energy of unfolding was determined using guanidine HCl as a denaturant. Tween 20 and Tween 80 had saturable binding to Albutropin with a molar binding stoichiometry of 10:1 and 9:1 (surfactant:protein), respectively. Binding of the surfactants to Albutropin increased the free energy of unfolding by over 1 and 0.6 kcal/mol, respectively. In protein samples that were agitated in the absence of surfactant, soluble aggregates were detected within 24 h, and there was almost complete loss of monomer to soluble aggregates by the end of the 96-h experiment. At the molar binding stoichiometry, Tween 20 and Tween 80 prevented the formation of soluble aggregates, even though the concentrations of surfactants were well below their critical micelle concentrations (CMC). Tween 20 and Tween 80 protected Albutropin against agitation-induced aggregation, even at concentrations below the CMC. Equilibrium unfolding data indicate that Tween confer protection by increasing the free energy of unfolding of Albutropin.

Post-Thaw Aging Affects Activity of Lactate Dehydrogenase

Freeze-thawing is routinely used to study freezing-induced irreversible protein denaturation in the formulation characterization and development of lyophilized proteins. In most cases, the temperature profiles of the samples are not fully monitored during freeze-thawing and therefore, the sample thermal histories are largely unknown. The objective of this study was to develop experimental protocols for the study of isothermal protein degradation using a temperature-step apparatus. Freeze-thaw experiments were performed at a freezing rate of 10 degrees C/min and various thawing rates (0.5-3.3 degrees C/min) using a temperature-step apparatus. In our efforts to design validation studies, we encountered anomalies in the recovered enzyme activity data of an enzyme, lactate dehydrogenase at the end of freeze-thawing. The effect of thawing rate was studied to explain the variability in the data. In addition, post-thaw "aging" of freshly frozen and thawed samples was performed at 5 degrees C to reduce the variability in the recovered enzyme activity. Results from these experiments implicate the use of aging of dilute multimeric enzymes at the end of freeze-thawing to control the variability in enzyme assays.

Investigation of freeze–drying sublimation rates using a freeze–drying microbalance technique

This study was to investigate the effects of different freeze-drying factors on the rate of sublimation. The experiments were carried out in a custom-built freeze-drying microbalance to accurately monitor the sample temperature and control the chamber pressure. Twenty-four experiments were conducted based on a full factorial design by changing four factors: freezing rate (fast freezing or slow freezing), chamber temperature (35, 0, or -35 degrees C), chamber pressure (30 or 1000 mTorr), and the presence or absence of an annealing process. Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), a tetrameric protein, was selected as a model protein for this study. The statistical analysis of the experimental results revealed that chamber temperature, analogous to the shelf temperature, in this experiment system, had the greatest impact on the sublimation rate. High chamber temperature resulted in high sublimation rate, regardless of the chamber pressure and thermal history of the sample. Chamber pressure was an important factor affecting the sublimation rate. In addition, both chamber temperature and chamber pressure had significant impact on sample temperature during freeze-drying. Annealing the samples was the most critical step to preserve good freeze-dried cake structure.

Protection of the enzyme L-asparaginase during lyophilisation--a molecular modelling approach to predict required level of lyoprotectant

Many novel therapeutic agents are proteins and peptides which need stabilisation due to their inherent instability in aqueous solution. Freeze-drying is an established method for protein stabilisation, although the use of additives is often necessary in order to preserve protein structure and activity during lyophilisation itself. The molecular interactions between protein and protective additive are as yet unclear. In this study, we examined the use of a range of saccharide additives to stabilise the model multi-subunit enzyme L-asparaginase during lyophilisation, assessed post-drying enzyme activity and quaternary structure, and related the extrapolated levels of additive necessary to provide full stabilisation to the theoretical levels predicted from an existing hypothesis using molecular modelling. It was found that each of the saccharides tested here displayed similar levels of protection towards L-asparaginase under the conditions used. Amounts of additive required to give full stabilisation to the enzyme were extrapolated from the activity data and were found to be in good agreement with theoretical amounts calculated from molecular modelling studies. Our data suggest that the existing hypothesis may be relevant to the prediction of optimum levels of lyoprotectant for the freeze-drying of proteins. However, further studies would be necessary in order to obtain a full picture of protein-additive interactions at the molecular level.

Effect of Tween 20 on freeze-thawing- and agitation-induced aggregation of recombinant human factor XIII

Agitation- and freeze-thawing-induced aggregation of recombinant human factor XIII (rFXIII) is due to interfacial adsorption and denaturation at the air-liquid and ice-liquid interfaces. The aggregation pathway proceeds through soluble aggregates to formation of insoluble aggregates regardless of the denaturing stimuli. A nonionic surfactant, polyoxyethylene sorbitan monolaurate (Tween 20), greatly reduces the rate of formation of insoluble aggregates as a function of surfactant concentration, thereby stabilizing native rFXIII. Maximum protection occurs at concentrations close to the critical micelle concentration (cmc), independent of initial protein concentration. To study the mechanistic aspects of the surfactant-induced stabilization, a series of spectroscopic studies were conducted. Electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy indicates that binding is not occurring between Tween 20 and either the native state or a folding intermediate state of rFXIII. Further, circular dichroism spectroscopy suggests that Tween 20 does not prevent the secondary structural changes induced upon guanidinium hydrochloride-induced unfolding. Taken together, these results imply that Tween 20 protects rFXIII against freeze-thawing- and agitation-induced aggregation primarily by competing with stress-induced soluble aggregates for interfaces, inhibiting subsequent transition to insoluble aggregates.

Stabilization of lactate dehydrogenase following freeze thawing and vacuum-drying in the presence of trehalose and borate

PURPOSE

The purpose of this work was to investigate the effects of trehalose and trehalose/sodium tetraborate mixtures on recovery of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity following freeze-thawing and centrifugal vacuum-drying/rehydration. The storage stability of LDH under conditions of either high relative humidity or high temperature was also studied.

METHODS

LDH was prepared in buffered aqueous formulations containing trehalose alone and trehalose/"borate" mixtures. Enzymatic activity was measured immediately following freeze-thawing and vacuum-drying/rehydration processes, and also after vacuum-dried formulations were stored in either high humidity or high temperature environments. Also, glass transition temperatures (Tg) were measured for both freeze-dried and vacuum-dried formulations.

RESULTS

The Tg values of freeze-dried trehalose/borate mixtures are considerably higher than that of trehalose alone. Freezing and vacuum-drying LDH in the presence of 300 mM trehalose resulted in the recovery of 80% and 65% of the original activity, respectively. For vacuum-dried mixtures, boron concentrations below 1.2 mole boron/ mole trehalose had no effect on recovered LDH. After several weeks storage in either humid (100% relative humidity) or warm (45 degrees C) environments, vacuum-dried formulations that included trehalose and borate showed greater enzymatic activities than those prepared with trehalose alone. We attribute this stability to the formation of a chemical complex between trehalose and borate.

CONCLUSIONS

The high Tg values of trehalose/borate mixtures offer several advantages over the use of trehalose alone. Most notable is the storage stability under conditions of high temperature and high relative humidity. In these cases, formulations that contain trehalose and borate are superior to those containing trehalose alone. These results have practical implications for long-term storage of biological materials.

Effect of process conditions on recovery of protein activity after freezing and freeze-drying

The objective of this research was to gain a better understanding of the degree to which recovery of activity of model proteins after freeze-drying can be maximized by manipulation of freeze-dry process conditions in the absence of protective solutes. Catalase, beta-galactosidase and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) were used as model proteins. All of the three proteins exhibited a concentration-dependent loss of activity after freezing, with significantly higher recovery at higher concentration. The freezing method and the type of buffer were also important, with sodium phosphate buffer and freezing by immersion of vials in liquid nitrogen associated with the lowest recovery of activity. Differential scanning calorimetry was predictive of the onset of collapse during freeze-drying only for beta-galactosidase. For the other proteins, either no Tg' transition was observed, or the apparent glass transition did not correlate with the microscopically-observed collapse temperature. The time course of activity loss for beta-galactosidase and LDH was compared during freeze-drying under conditions which produced collapse of the dried matrix and conditions which produced retention of microstructure in the dried solid. Recovery of activity decreased continuously during primary drying, with no sharp drop in recovery of activity associated with the onset of collapse. The most important drying process variable affecting recovery of activity was residual moisture level, with a dramatic drop in activity recovery associated with residual moisture levels less than about 10%.

Increased stabilizing effects of amphiphilic excipients on freeze-drying of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) by dispersion into sugar matrices

PURPOSE

The stabilizing effect of amphiphilic excipients and sugars against protein inactivation during freeze-drying was studied in relation to their physical states in freeze-dried cakes.

METHODS

Physical states of amphiphilic excipients were studied by powder X-ray diffractometry and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Stabilizing effects of excipients were studied using lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) as a model protein.

RESULTS

Although poly(ethylene glycols) (PEGs) 1000 to 2000 crystallized when freeze-dried alone, the addition of sugars decreased their crystallinity by dispersing PEG into sugar-dominant matrices. Sugars species, molecular weight of PEGs, and buffer concentration also affected the crystallinity of PEGs. Sugars also dispersed some of other amphiphilic excipients, which tended to crystallize or become "microscopically liquid" when freeze-dried without sugar. Only the amphiphilic excipients that remained amorphous solid state protected the enzyme during freeze-drying in the absence of sugars. However, combinations of sucrose and all the amphiphilic excipients studied increased the stabilizing effects markedly. The remaining activities were greater than the sum of their individual ones.

CONCLUSIONS

Various amphiphilic excipients are good stabilizers for freeze-drying of proteins when dispersed into sugar-dominant matrices.