Lab 4 - Affinity Chromatography Flashcards
What are the tasks of this lab?
- Laboratory Introduction
- Equilibrium of Ni-NTA Agarose matrix
- Affinity Chromatography-Batch Method
- Washing and Elution of His6-PTEN Protein
- Quantitation of Purification Yield by Bradford Assay
- Purity Analysis by SDS/PAGE
What is affinity chromatography employed to do in this lab?
Purify PTEN-His from bacterial lysates
What is the principle of affinity chromatography based on?
The exploitation of the specific, reversible binding between the protein of interest and a specific molecule immobilized on an inert support
What does the affinity chromatography technique have to offer?
High selectivity, hence high resolution, and high binding capacity for the protein of interest
Why is affinity chromatography a unique purification technology?
It is the only technique that enables the purification of a biomolecule based on its biological function or individual chemical structure
Purification that would otherwise be time-consuming, and complex using other techniques can often be easily achieved utilizing affinity chromatography in ____
a single step
What can affinity chromatography be used for?
To separate active biomolecules from denatured or functionally different forms, to isolate pure substances present at low concentration in high volumes of crude sample, and to remove specific contaminants
The biological interactions between ligand and target molecules can be a result of what?
Electrostatic or hydrophobic interactions, van der Waal’s forces and/or hydrogen bonding
How would the target molecule be eluted from the affinity matrix?
Interactions are reversed. Either specifically using a competitive ligand or non-specifically by changing the pH, ionic strength, or polarity
What does successful affinity purification require?
A biospecific ligand that can be covalently attached to a chromatography matrix
What must the coupled ligand retain?
Its specific binding affinity for the target molecules
After washing away unbound material, why must the binding between the ligand and target molecule be reversible?
To allow the target molecules to be removed in an active form
What can be used as a ligand to purify its respective binding partner?
Any component
What are some typical biological interactions frequently used in affinity chromatography?
- Enzyme; Substrate analogue, Inhibitor, Cofactor
- Antibody; Antigen, Virus, Cell (epitopes)
- Lectin; Polysaccharide, Glycoprotein, Cell surface receptor
- Nucleic acid; Complementary base sequence, Histones, Nucleic acid polymerase, Nucleic acid binding protein
- Hormone or Vitamin; Receptor, Carrier protein
- Metal ions; Poly (His) fusion proteins
- Glutathione; Glutathione-S-transferase, GST fusion protein
What is the process of affinity chromatography?
1) Affinity matrix is equilibrated in binding buffer
2) Sample is applied under experimental conditions that favour specific binding of the target molecule
3) Target protein is recovered by changing the condition to favour elution of the bound molecule
4) Affinity matrix is re-equilibrated in binding buffer
What is the matrix?
An inert support to which a ligand can be directly or indirectly coupled
What are the properties required for an efficient and effective chromatography matrix?
- Extremely low, non-specific absorption is essential since the success of affinity chromatography relies on specific interactions
- Hydroxyl groups on the sugar residues are easily derivatized for covalent attachment of a ligand, providing an ideal platform for the development of affinity media
- An open pore structure ensures high capacity binding even for large biomolecules since the interior of the matrix is available for ligand attachment
- Good flow properties for rapid separation
- Stability under a range of experimental conditions such as high and low pH, detergents, and dissociating agents
Where is the binding site of a target protein often located?
Deep within the molecule and an affinity medium