Entrapment of alpha1-acid glycoprotein in high-performance affinity columns for drug-protein binding studies

Porous polymer monolithic columns to investigate the interaction of humic substances with herbicides and emerging pollutants by affinity chromatography

BACKGROUND

Understanding the interaction mechanisms and the relevant binding constants between humic acids and emerging or regulated pollutants is of utmost importance in predicting their geochemical mobility, bioavailability, and degradation. Fluorescence spectroscopy, UV-vis spectroscopy, equilibrium dialysis, and solid-phase extraction combined with liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry have been employed to elucidate interactions of humic acids with organic micropollutants, especially pharmaceutical drugs. These methods demand large sample volumes, long equilibration times, and laborious extraction steps which may imply analytical errors. Monolithic high-performance affinity chromatography is an alternative and simpler method to investigate these interactions and determine the binding constants.

RESULTS

Polymer monoliths based on aminated glycidyl methacrylate and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate served to immobilize Cu(II) and then humic acid to produce monolithic affinity chromatography columns with humic acid as the active interaction phase. About 86.5 mg of humic acid was immobilized per gram of polymer. The columns enabled a comparison of the binding strength of humic acid with herbicides and emerging pollutants at 25 °C and pH 6.0 ± 0.1. Paracetamol, acetylsalicylic acid, and salicylic acid did not retain. Among the compounds that interacted with humic acid, the order of increasing affinity, estimated by the global affinity constant (nKa) or partition coefficient (KD) was: caffeine < simazine < atrazine ∼ propazine < benzophenone. The nKa (L mol-1) values ranged from (4.9 ± 0.3) × 102 for caffeine to (1.9 ± 0.3) × 103 for benzophenone, whereas KD (L kg-1) varied from 14 ± 1 to 56 ± 8 for the same compounds.

SIGNIFICANCE AND NOVELTY

To our knowledge, this is the first paper demonstrating the use of a monolithic platform to immobilize supramolecular structures of humic acids exploiting immobilized metal affinity to comparatively evaluate their affinity towards emerging pollutants exploiting the concepts of high-performance affinity chromatography. The proposed approach needs only small amounts of humic acid, which is a relevant feature in preparing columns with humic substances isolated and purified from remote areas.

Production of anti-inflammatory films based on cashew gum polysaccharide and polyvinyl alcohol for wound dressing applications

In the present study, we aimed to produce CGP/PVA films containing entrapped anti-inflammatory drugs for wound dressing applications. Using a 33-1 fractional factorial design, the effect of each component was evaluated on the physicochemical and morphological properties of the produced materials. The best formulation for entrapment of diclofenac sodium and ketoprofen was also determined. The produced films presented high swelling capacity, with some formulations showing o porous structure. CGP/PVA films showed a maximum retention of 75.6% for diclofenac sodium and 32.2% for ketoprofen, and both drugs were released in a controlled manner for up to 7 h. The drug release kinetic was studied, and the data were fitted using a Korsmeyer-Peppas model, which suggested that the release mechanism is controlled by diffusion. These results indicate that CGP/PVA-based matrices have great potential to be used as drug-delivery systems for wound dressing applications, contributing to prolonging the drug's action time and then improving their anti-inflammatory efficacy.

Characterization of binding by sulfonylureas with normal or modified human serum albumin using affinity microcolumns prepared by entrapment

Modification of proteins can occur during diabetes due to the formation of advanced glycation end-products (AGEs) with reactive dicarbonyls such as glyoxal (Go) and methylglyoxal (MGo). Human serum albumin (HSA) is a serum protein that binds to many drugs in blood and that is known to be modified by Go and MGo. This study examined the binding of various sulfonylurea drugs with these modified forms of HSA by using high-performance affinity microcolumns prepared by non-covalent protein entrapment. Zonal elution experiments were employed to compare the retention and overall binding constants for the drugs with Go- or MGo-modified HSA vs normal HSA. The results were compared to values from the literature, such as measured or estimated using affinity columns containing covalently immobilized HSA or biospecifically-adsorbed HSA. The entrapment-based approach provided estimates of global affinity constants within 3-5 min for most of the tested drugs and with typical precisions of ±10-23%. Each entrapped protein microcolumn was stable for over at least 60-70 injections and one month of use. The results obtained with normal HSA agreed at the 95% confidence level with global affinity constants that have been reported for the given drugs in the literature. It was found for HSA that had been modified with clinically-relevant levels of either Go or MGo that an increase in the global affinity constant of up to 2.1-fold occurred for some of the tested drugs. The information acquired in this study can be used in the future to adapt this entrapment-based approach to study and evaluate interactions between other types of drugs and normal or modified binding agents for clinical testing and biomedical research.

Preparation of entrapment-based microcolumns for analysis of drug-humic acid interactions by high-performance affinity chromatography

Reversible interactions between drugs and humic acid in water can be an important factor in determining the bioavailability and effects of these pharmaceuticals as micropollutants in the environment. In this study, microcolumns containing entrapped humic acid were used in high-performance affinity chromatography (HPAC) to examine the binding of this agent with the drugs tetracycline, carbamazepine, ciprofloxacin, and norfloxacin. Parameters that were varied to optimize the entrapment of humic acid within HPLC-grade porous silica included the starting concentration of humic acid, the mass ratio of humic acid vs silica, and the method of mixing the reagents with the support for the entrapment process. The highest retention for the tested drugs was obtained when using supports that were prepared using an initial humic acid concentration of 80 mg mL^-1 and a humic acid vs silica mass ratio of 600 mg per g silica, along with preincubation of the humic acid with hydrazide-activated silica before the addition of a capping agent (i.e., oxidized glycogen). Characterization of the humic acid support was also carried out by means of TGA, FTIR, SEM, and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The binding constants measured by HPAC for the given drugs with entrapped Aldrich humic acid gave good agreement with values reported in the literature under similar pH and temperature conditions for this and other forms of humic acid. Besides providing valuable data on the binding strength of various drugs with humic acid, this work illustrates how HPAC may be used as an analytical tool for screening and characterizing the interactions of drugs and man-made contaminants with humic acid or related binding agents in water and the environment.

Fundamentals of chirality, resolution, and enantiopure molecule synthesis methods

The chirality of molecules is a concept that explains the interactions in nature. We may observe the same formula but different organizations revolving around the chiral center. Since Pasteur's meticulous observation of sodium ammonium tartrate crystals' structure, scientists have discovered many features of chiral molecules. The number of newly approved single enantiomeric drugs increases every year and takes place in the market. Thus, separation or resolution methods of racemic mixtures are of continued importance in the efficacy of drugs, installation of affordable production processes, and convenient synthetic chemistry practice. This article presents the asymmetric synthesis approaches and the classification of direct resolution methods of chiral molecules.

Entrapment of Proteins Within Columns for High-Performance Affinity Chromatography

Entrapment is a noncovalent immobilization method that enables a large biological binding agent, such as a protein, to be put within a support without modifying the structure of the binding agent. This chapter describes an on-column entrapment method that can be used with proteins and HPLC-grade silica to prepare columns for high-performance liquid chromatography. In this method, a protein is trapped within a dihydrazide-activated silica support by using oxidized glycogen as a capping agent. This method allows the protein to be placed within the support in a soluble form and with little or no loss of activity. The approach and reagents needed for this method are described in this chapter, along with some applications reported for columns that have been made using on-column protein entrapment.

Characterization of drug binding with alpha1-acid glycoprotein in clinical samples using ultrafast affinity extraction

Many drugs bind to serum transport proteins, which can affect both drug distribution and activity in the body. α₁-Acid glycoprotein (AGP) is a key transport protein for basic and neutral drugs. Both elevated levels and altered glycosylation patterns of AGP have been seen in clinical conditions such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). This study developed, optimized, and used the method of ultrafast affinity extraction (UAE) to examine whether these changes in AGP are associated with changes in the binding by some drugs to this transport protein. This approach used affinity microcolumns to capture and measure, in serum, the free fractions of several drugs known to bind AGP. These measurements were made with pooled normal control serum and serum samples from individuals with SLE. Immunoaffinity chromatography was used to obtain the content of AGP and HSA in these samples, and CE was used to examine the glycoform pattern for AGP in each serum sample. The free drug fractions measured for normal control serum ranged from 3.5 to 29.1%, in agreement with the results of ultrafiltration, and provided binding constants of ~10⁵-10⁶ M^-1 for the given drugs with AGP at 37⁰C. Analysis of a screening set of SLE serum samples by UAE gave decreased free fractions (relative change, 12-55%) vs normal serum when spiked with the same types and amounts of drugs. These changes were related in some cases to AGP content, with some SLE samples having AGP levels 1.3- to 2.1-fold above the upper end of the normal range. In other cases, the changes in free fractions appeared to be linked to alterations in the glycoforms and binding constants of AGP, with some affinities differing by 1.2- to 1.5-fold vs normal AGP. This approach can be employed with other solute-protein systems and to investigate binding by other drugs or transport proteins directly in clinical samples.

Affinity chromatography: A review of trends and developments over the past 50 years

The field of affinity chromatography, which employs a biologically-related agent as the stationary phase, has seen significant growth since the modern era of this method began in 1968. This review examines the major developments and trends that have occurred in this technique over the past five decades. The basic principles and history of this area are first discussed. This is followed by an overview of the various supports, immobilization strategies, and types of binding agents that have been used in this field. The general types of applications and fields of use that have appeared for affinity chromatography are also considered. A survey of the literature is used to identify major trends in these topics and important areas of use for affinity chromatography in the separation, analysis, or characterization of chemicals and biochemicals.

Emerging or Underestimated Silica-Based Stationary Phases in Liquid Chromatography

Several newly synthesized or forgotten silica-based stationary phases proposed for liquid chromatography are described, including non-endcapped, short-chain alkyl phases; hydrophilic and polar-endcapped stationary phases; polar-embedded alkyl phases; long-chain alkyl phases. Stationary phases with aromatic, cyanopropyl, diol and aminopropyl functionalities are also reviewed. Stationary phases of particular interest are biomolecular materials - based on immobilized cholesterol, aminoacids, peptides, proteins or lipoproteins. Packing materials involving macrocyclic chemistry (crown ethers; calixarenes; aza-macrocycles; oligo-and polysaccharides including these of marine origin - chitin- or chitosan-based; macrocyclic antibiotics) are discussed. Since many stationary phases developed for one type of applications (e.g. chiral separation) have been found useful in solving other analytical problems (e.g. drug's plasma protein binding ability), it seemed reasonable to discuss particular chemistries behind the stationary phases presented in this review rather than specific types of interactions or chromatographic modes.

Sample preparation techniques for protein binding measurement in radiopharmaceutical approaches: A short review

Plasma protein binding (PPB) measurement is a key step in radiopharmaceutical studies for the development of positron emission tomography (PET) radioligands. PPB refers to the binding degree of a radioligand, radiotracer, or drug to blood plasma proteins or tissues after administration into the body. Several techniques have been successfully developed and applied for PPB measurement of PET radioligands. However, there is room for progress among these techniques in relation to duration time, adaptability with nonpolar radioligands, in vivo measurement, specificity, and selectivity. This mini review gives a brief overview of advances, limitations, and prospective applications of commercially-available PPB methods.

Development of an on-line immunoextraction/entrapment system for protein capture and use in drug binding studies by high-performance affinity chromatography

An on-line purification and entrapment system was developed that could extract a protein from a sample such as serum and entrap this protein within a small column for use in high-performance affinity chromatography. Human serum albumin (HSA) was employed as a model protein for this work. Immunoextraction columns containing polyclonal anti-HSA antibodies were developed to capture and isolate HSA from applied samples. This was followed by the use of a strong cation-exchange column to recapture and focus HSA as it eluted from the immunoextraction columns. The recaptured HSA was entrapped within 1.0 cm × 2.1 mm I.D. columns containing hydrazide-activated silica and in the presence of oxidized glycogen as a capping agent. The binding and elution properties of HSA on the various components of this system were examined and optimized. The entrapped columns produced by this system were then evaluated for their use in binding studies with several sulfonylurea drugs. The HSA columns created by this approach typically contained 0.3-0.6 nmol HSA and were stable over several weeks and more than 50-60 sample injections. Drug binding constants could be determined with these columns in 8 min or less by zonal elution and gave good agreement with literature values. The same system could be used for the capture and entrapment of other proteins by utilizing antibodies against the given target for immunoextraction.

An insight into chiral monolithic stationary phases for enantioselective high-performance liquid chromatography applications

In this review, three main classes of chiral monolithic stationary phases, namely silica-, organic polymer-, and hybrid-based monolithic stationary phases, are covered. Their preparations, applications, and advantages compared with the conventional-packed and open-tubular capillary columns are discussed. A detailed description of the different types and techniques used for the introduction of chiral selectors into the monolithic matrices such as immobilization, functionalization, coating, encapsulation, and bonding. Special emphasis is given to the recent developments of chiral selectors in HPLC monolithic stationary phases during the past 18 years.

Optimization of protein entrapment in affinity microcolumns using hydrazide-activated silica and glycogen as a capping agent

Several approaches were compared for the entrapment of proteins within hydrazide-activated silica for use in affinity microcolumns and high performance affinity chromatography. Human serum albumin (HSA) and concanavalin A (Con A) were used as model proteins for this work. Items considered in this study included the role played by the solution volume, amount of added protein, and use of slurry vs. on-column entrapment on the levels of solute retention and extent of protein immobilization that could be obtained by means of entrapment. The levels of retention and protein immobilization were evaluated by injecting warfarin or 4-methylumbellipheryl α-D-mannopyranoside as solutes with known binding properties for HSA or Con A. Altering both the solution volume and amount of added protein led to an increase of up to 17-fold in the extent of protein immobilization for HSA in slurry-based entrapment; on-column entrapment provided an additional 3.6-fold increase in protein content vs. the optimized slurry method. Similar general trends were seen for Con A. The protein contents obtained by entrapment for HSA or Con A (i.e., up to ~87 and 46 mg/g silica, respectively) were comparable to or higher than levels reported for the covalent immobilization of these proteins onto silica. The retention of warfarin on the entrapped HSA was at least 1.7-fold higher than has been obtained under comparable support and mobile phase conditions when using covalent immobilization. These results indicated that entrapment can be an attractive alternative to covalent immobilization for proteins such as HSA and Con A, with this approach serving as a potential means for obtaining good solute binding and retention in work with affinity microcolumns or related microscale devices.

Chiral Stationary Phases for Liquid Chromatography: Recent Developments

The planning and development of new chiral stationary phases (CSPs) for liquid chromatography (LC) are considered as continuous and evolutionary issues since the introduction of the first CSP in 1938. The main objectives of the development strategies were to attempt the improvement of the chromatographic enantioresolution performance of the CSPs as well as enlarge their versatility and range of applications. Additionally, the transition to ultra-high-performance LC were underscored. The most recent strategies have comprised the introduction of new chiral selectors, the use of new materials as chromatographic supports or the reduction of its particle size, and the application of different synthetic approaches for preparation of CSPs. This review gathered the most recent developments associated to the different types of CSPs providing an overview of the relevant advances that are arising on LC.

Characterization of solution-phase drug-protein interactions by ultrafast affinity extraction

A number of tools based on high-performance affinity separations have been developed for studying drug-protein interactions. An example of one recent approach is ultrafast affinity extraction. This method has been employed to examine the free (or non-bound) fractions of drugs and other solutes in simple or complex samples that contain soluble binding agents. These free fractions have also been used to determine the binding constants and rate constants for the interactions of drugs with these soluble agents. This report describes the general principles of ultrafast affinity extraction and the experimental conditions under which it can be used to characterize such interactions. This method will be illustrated by utilizing data that have been obtained when using this approach to measure the binding and dissociation of various drugs with the serum transport proteins human serum albumin and alpha₁-acid glycoprotein. A number of practical factors will be discussed that should be considered in the design and optimization of this approach for use with single-column or multi-column systems. Techniques will also be described for analyzing the resulting data for the determination of free fractions, rate constants and binding constants. In addition, the extension of this method to complex samples, such as clinical specimens, will be considered.

Studies of drug interactions with alpha1-acid glycoprotein by using on-line immunoextraction and high-performance affinity chromatography

A method that combined on-line immunoextraction with high-performance affinity chromatography was developed to examine the binding of drugs with α₁-acid glycoprotein (AGP). Affinity microcolumns containing immobilized polyclonal anti-AGP antibodies were developed that had a capture efficiency of up to 98.4% for AGP and a binding capacity of 0.72nmol AGP when using a 20mm×2.1mm i.d. microcolumn. These microcolumns were employed in various formats to examine the binding of drugs to normal AGP and AGP that had been adsorbed from serum samples for patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Drugs that were screened in zonal elution experiments for their overall binding to these types of AGP included chlorpromazine, disopyramide, imipramine, propranolol, and warfarin. Most of these drugs showed an increase in their binding to the AGP from SLE serum when compared to normal AGP (i.e., an increase of 13-76%); however, disopyramide gave a 21-25% decrease in retention when the same AGP samples were compared. Frontal analysis was used to further evaluate the binding of disopyramide and imipramine to these forms of AGP. Both drugs gave a good fit to a model that involved a combination of saturable and non-saturable interactions with AGP. Changes in the non-saturable interactions accounted for most of variations seen in the binding of disopyramide and imipramine with the AGP samples. The methods used in this study could be adapted for use in personalized medicine and the study of other proteins or drugs using aqueous mixtures or clinical samples.

Analysis of Biological Interactions by Affinity Chromatography: Clinical and Pharmaceutical Applications

BACKGROUND

The interactions between biochemical and chemical agents in the body are important in many clinical processes. Affinity chromatography and high-performance affinity chromatography (HPAC), in which a column contains an immobilized biologically related binding agent, are 2 methods that can be used to study these interactions.

CONTENT

This review presents various approaches that can be used in affinity chromatography and HPAC to characterize the strength or rate of a biological interaction, the number and types of sites that are involved in this process, and the interactions between multiple solutes for the same binding agent. A number of applications for these methods are examined, with an emphasis on recent developments and high-performance affinity methods. These applications include the use of these techniques for fundamental studies of biological interactions, high-throughput screening of drugs, work with modified proteins, tools for personalized medicine, and studies of drug-drug competition for a common binding agent.

SUMMARY

The wide range of formats and detection methods that can be used with affinity chromatography and HPAC for examining biological interactions makes these tools attractive for various clinical and pharmaceutical applications. Future directions in the development of small-scale columns and the coupling of these methods with other techniques, such as mass spectrometry or other separation methods, should continue to increase the flexibility and ease with which these approaches can be used in work involving clinical or pharmaceutical samples.

Chromatographic studies of drug interactions with alpha1-acid glycoprotein by ultrafast affinity extraction and peak profiling

Interactions with serum proteins such as alpha₁-acid glycoprotein (AGP) can have a significant effect on the behavior and pharmacokinetics of drugs. Ultrafast affinity extraction and peak profiling were used with AGP microcolumns to examine these processes for several model drugs (i.e., chlorpromazine, disopyramide, imipramine, lidocaine, propranolol and verapamil). The association equilibrium constants measured for these drugs with soluble AGP by ultrafast affinity extraction were in the general range of 10⁴-10⁶M^-1 at pH 7.4 and 37°C and gave good agreement with literature values. Some of these values were dependent on the relative drug and protein concentrations that were present when using a single-site binding model; these results suggested a more complex mixed-mode interaction was actually present, which was also then used to analyze the data. The apparent dissociation rate constants that were obtained by ultrafast affinity extraction when using a single-site model varied from 0.14 to 7.0s^-1 and were dependent on the relative drug and protein concentrations. Lower apparent dissociation rate constants were obtained by this approach as the relative amount of drug versus protein was decreased, with the results approaching those measured by peak profiling at low drug concentrations. This information should be useful in better understanding how these and other drugs interact with AGP in the circulation. In addition, the chromatographic approaches that were optimized and used in this report to examine these systems can be adapted for the analysis of other solute-protein interactions of biomedical interest.

Chromatographic Studies of Protein-Based Chiral Separations

The development of separation methods for the analysis and resolution of chiral drugs and solutes has been an area of ongoing interest in pharmaceutical research. The use of proteins as chiral binding agents in high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) has been an approach that has received particular attention in such work. This report provides an overview of proteins that have been used as binding agents to create chiral stationary phases (CSPs) and in the use of chromatographic methods to study these materials and protein-based chiral separations. The supports and methods that have been employed to prepare protein-based CSPs will also be discussed and compared. Specific types of CSPs that are considered include those that employ serum transport proteins (e.g., human serum albumin, bovine serum albumin, and alpha1-acid glycoprotein), enzymes (e.g., penicillin G acylase, cellobiohydrolases, and α-chymotrypsin) or other types of proteins (e.g., ovomucoid, antibodies, and avidin or streptavidin). The properties and applications for each type of protein and CSP will also be discussed in terms of their use in chromatography and chiral separations.

On-column entrapment of alpha1-acid glycoprotein for studies of drug-protein binding by high-performance affinity chromatography

An on-column approach for protein entrapment was developed to immobilize alpha1-acid glycoprotein (AGP) for drug-protein binding studies based on high-performance affinity chromatography. Soluble AGP was physically entrapped by using microcolumns that contained hydrazide-activated porous silica and by employing mildly oxidized glycogen as a capping agent. Three on-column entrapment methods were evaluated and compared to a previous slurry-based entrapment method. The final selected method was used to prepare 1.0 cm × 2.1 mm I.D. affinity microcolumns that contained up to 21 (±4) μg AGP and that could be used over the course of more than 150 sample applications. Frontal analysis and zonal elution studies were performed on these affinity microcolumns to examine the binding of various drugs with the entrapped AGP. Site-selective competition studies were also conducted for these drugs. The results showed good agreement with previous observations for these drug-protein systems and with binding constants that have been reported in the literature. The entrapment method developed in this study should be useful for future work in the area of personalized medicine and in the high-throughput screening of drug interactions with AGP or other proteins. Graphical abstract On-column protein entrapment using a hydrazide-activated support and oxidized glycogen as a capping agent.