Glycerol-Assisted Hydrophobic Interaction Chromatography Improving Refolding of Recombinant Human Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor

Rapid isolation of lentivirus particles from cell culture media via a hydrophobic interaction chromatography method on a polyester, capillary-channeled polymer fiber stationary phase

Lentiviruses are increasingly used as gene delivery vehicles for vaccines and immunotherapies. However, the purification of clinical-grade lentivirus vectors for therapeutic use is still troublesome and limits preclinical and clinical experiments. Current purification methods such as ultracentrifugation and ultrafiltration are time consuming and do not remove all of the impurities such as cellular debris, membrane fragments, and denatured proteins from the lentiviruses. The same challenges exist in terms of their analytical characterization. Presented here is the novel demonstration of the chromatographic isolation of virus particles from culture media based on the hydrophobicity characteristics of the vesicles. A method was developed to isolate lentivirus from media using a hydrophobic interaction chromatography (HIC) method performed on a polyester, capillary-channeled polymer (PET C-CP) stationary phase and a standard liquid chromatography apparatus. The method is an extension of the approach developed in this laboratory for the isolation of extracellular vesicles (EVs). Quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) was used to verify and quantify lentiviruses in elution fractions. Load and elution mobile phase compositions were optimized to affect high efficiency and throughput. The process has been visualized via scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of the fiber surfaces following media injection, the elution of proteinaceous material, and the elution of lentiviruses. This effort has yielded a rapid (<10 min), low-cost (< $15 per column, providing multiple separations), and efficient method for the isolation/purification of lentivirus particles from cell culture media at the analytical scale.

Evaluation of exosome loading characteristics in their purification via a glycerol-assisted hydrophobic interaction chromatography method on a polyester, capillary-channeled polymer fiber phase

Exosomes are membrane-secreted vesicles, with sizes ranging from 30 to 150 nm, which play key roles in intercellular communication. There is intense interest in developing methods to isolate and quantify exosomes toward clinical diagnostics, fundamental studies of intercellular processes, and use of exosomes as delivery vehicles for therapeutic agents. Current methods for exosomes isolation and quantification are time consuming and have operational high costs; few combine isolation and quantification into a singular operation unit. This report describes the use of hydrophobic interaction chromatography on a polyester capillary-channeled polymer fiber column, employing a step gradient for exosome elution, including use of glycerol as a solvent modifier. The entire procedure is completed in 8 min, while maintaining the structural integrity and biological activity of the isolated exosomes. Electron microscopy was used to verify the size and structural fidelity of single exosomes. Absorbance response curves for a commercial exosome sample were used for exosome quantification in the chromatographic separations. In order to determine the dynamic loading capacity for exosomes, different volumes of Dictyostelium discoideum cell culture milieu supernatant were loaded at different column lengths (5-30 cm) and loading flow rates (0.2-0.5 ml/min). A loading capacity of 5.4 × 10¹² exosomes derived from D. discoideum milieu was obtained on a 0.8 × 300 mm column; yielding recoveries of over 80%. It is believed that this isolation and purification strategy holds many advantages toward the use of exosomes across a wide breadth of medical and biotechnology applications.

Fast preparation of recombinant human stem cell factor from inclusion bodies using different hydrophobic interaction chromatographic columns

A method was developed to increase the recovery of recombinant human stem cell factor (rhSCF) from inclusion bodies using high performance hydrophobic interaction chromatography (HPHIC). The target protein was first solubilized in 8.0 mol/L urea solution, and was purified and refolded simultaneously by HPHIC with different chromatographic cakes. Experimental conditions, such as the ligand structures of stationary phase and the composition of mobile phase, were optimized. Under the optimal conditions, high mass recoveries and specific activities of rhSCF were acquired, the purities of rhSCF were above 95.5%, and the mass recoveries of rhSCF were above 49.6%. The final product was also verified as monomer by size exclusion chromatography and matrix assisted laser desorption ionization time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS). These results provided further evidence that HPHIC is an effective tool in the refolding and purification of recombinant proteins.