An innovative monolithic column preparation for the isolation of 25kilo base pairs DNA

Application of an electro elution system for direct purification of linear covalently closed DNA fragments

Gene therapy is a powerful treatment modality. Non-viral gene therapy vectors power one arm of this important approach, due to their enhanced safety profile compared to their viral counterparts. New non-viral approaches continue to be developed, but purification can bottleneck the scaleup and cost-effectiveness and quality of some of these advanced vectors. We require more advanced purification and separation techniques compared to conventional methods to maximize resolution in a scalable manner. The Prep Cell system is a continuous electro elution system that contains a circular gel casting tube where DNA mixtures can be run through and subsequently migrate into an elution chamber, to be eluted by a peristaltic pump. This DNA separation and purification process confers advantages over other conventional methods, including i) the elimination of multiple downstream purification process requirements; ii) its ability to be applied in mid-scale settings, and iii), its high-resolution power. In this study, we assessed the ability of this Prep Cell Model 491 system to purify a novel type of non-viral linear covalently closed (LCC) DNA minivector (ministring DNA) from its precursor parent plasmid DNA and process by-product DNA species by analyzing for effective separation via agarose gel electrophoresis, recovery yield, single enzyme digestion, and quality control assessments. Overall, effective separation and resolution of mini-DNA vectors was obtained using the Prep Cell system, conferring its potential to be applied towards mid-scale purification of DNA vectors for a variety of research, and eventually, clinical applications.

On the performance of conically shaped columns: Theory and practice

The chromatographic performance (speed, efficiency, and gradient peak capacity for the same analysis time) of conical columns are investigated from fundamental and experimental viewpoints. A stainless steel, conically shaped column (2.1 mm i.d/4.2 mm i.d. × 15 cm long, 0.4° opening angle) was prepared in-house and packed with 5 μm XBridge-C₁₈ fully porous particles. Its performance was compared to that of a conventional 3.0 mm × 15 cm cylindrical column packed with the same batch of particles. Both Giddings' theory of non-uniform columns and experiments agree and show that, irrespective of flow direction, the conical column is 15% less efficient than the conventional column. Remarkably, Blumberg's theory of band broadening in gradient elution mode predicts that conical columns may outperform conventional cylindrical columns if the ratio of their outlet i.d. to their inlet i.d. is 0.95 and 0.80 for small molecule and peptide mixtures, respectively. The maximum relative gain is marginal as it does not exceed a few percents. The theory reveals that the flow direction should be from the wide to the narrow end of the conical column in order to deliver the highest peak capacity. In agreement with the theory, the observed losses in absolute peak capacity for the same analysis time are 14.5% (narrow to wide end) and only 11.0% (wide to the narrow end) for small molecules (n-alkanophenones). They are 14.2% (narrow to wide end) and only 8.5% (wide to the narrow end) for peptide samples (bombesin). Additionally, conical columns reduce peak tailing with respect to standard columns. They are suitable column technology for ultra-fast gradient separations as they also minimize sample dispersion through the narrow i.d. outlet frit.

Recent advances in chromatographic purification of plasmid DNA for gene therapy and DNA vaccines: A review

The wide spread of infectious diseases have provoked the scientists to develop new types of vaccines. Among the different types of vaccines, the recently discovered plasmid DNA vaccines, have gained tremendous attentions in the last few decades as a modern approach of vaccination. The scientific interest in plasmid DNA vaccines is attributed to their prominent efficacy as they trigger not only the cellular immune response but also the humoral immune responses. Moreover, pDNA vaccines are easily to be stored, shipped and produced. However, the purification of the pDNA vaccines is a crucial step in their production and administration, which is usually conducted by different chromatographic techniques. This review summarizes the most recent chromatographic purification methods provided in the literature during the last five years following our last review in 2013, including affinity chromatography, hydrophobic interaction chromatography, ion exchange chromatography, multimodal chromatography, sample displacement chromatography and miscellaneous chromatographic methods.

Development and characteristics of polymer monoliths for advanced LC bioscreening applications: A review

Biomedical research advances over the past two decades in bioseparation science and engineering have led to the development of new adsorbent systems called monoliths, mostly as stationary supports for liquid chromatography (LC) applications. They are acknowledged to offer better mass transfer hydrodynamics than their particulate counterparts. Also, their architectural and morphological traits can be tailored in situ to meet the hydrodynamic size of molecules which include proteins, pDNA, cells and viral targets. This has enabled their development for a plethora of enhanced bioscreening applications including biosensing, biomolecular purification, concentration and separation, achieved through the introduction of specific functional moieties or ligands (such as triethylamine, N,N-dimethyl-N-dodecylamine, antibodies, enzymes and aptamers) into the molecular architecture of monoliths. Notwithstanding, the application of monoliths presents major material and bioprocess challenges. The relationship between in-process polymerisation characteristics and the physicochemical properties of monolith is critical to optimise chromatographic performance. There is also a need to develop theoretical models for non-invasive analyses and predictions. This review article therefore discusses in-process analytical conditions, functionalisation chemistries and ligands relevant to establish the characteristics of monoliths in order to facilitate a wide range of enhanced bioscreening applications. It gives emphasis to the development of functional polymethacrylate monoliths for microfluidic and preparative scale bio-applications.