Lecture 3 Flashcards
What are the steps to recover a protein from the host cells?
- Extraction
- Enrichment/Isolating the protein of interest
- Purification
- Removal of contaminants
Name the techniques used for cell disruption.
- Homogenizations
- Ultrasonication
- Glass bead milling
- Osmotic shock
- Repeated freezing and thawing
- Enzymatic lysis
- Detergent based lysis
How does homogenization work to disrupt the cell membrane?
The sample is transferred from a chamber at high pressure through a narrow bore orifice into a chamber at low pressure. This rapid pressure drop disrupts the cell membrane.
What are the advantages of homogenization as a cell disruption method?
It is fast and efficient which allows it to be scaled up for large volumes
What are the disadvantages of homogenization as a cell disruption method?
It causes the sample to heat up, which could cause the proteins to denature, so cooling is required.
How does ultrasonication work to disrupt the cell membrane?
The cells are disrupted by high frequency sound waves
What are the advantages of ultrasonication as a cell disruption method?
Very straightforward and simple procedure
What are the disadvantages of ultrasonication as a cell disruption method?
- It causes the sample to heat up, which could cause the proteins to denature, so cooling is required. It can be difficult to control by cooling
- Proteins can get destroyed by shearing due to the sound waves.
- It is noisy so it can’t be used for large volumes
How does glass bead milling work to disrupt the cell membrane?
The cells are agitated with fine glass beads
What are the advantages of glass bead milling as a cell disruption method?
- It is useful for cells that are more difficult to disrupt (e.g. yeast)
- It can be scaled up for large volumes
What are the disadvantages of glass bead milling as a cell disruption method?
It’s relatively slow and noisy
How does osmotic shock work to disrupt the cell membrane?
The cells are transferred from a high to low osmotic medium (15-25% sucrose)
What are the advantages of osmotic shock as a cell disruption method?
Its a simple procedure
What are the disadvantages of osmotic shock as a cell disruption method?
It’s only useful for the disruption of cells with less robust walls like animal cells.
How does freezing and thawing work to disrupt the cell membrane?
The cells get disrupted by repeated formation of ice crystals
This is usually combined
with enzymatic lysis
What are the advantages of repeated freezing and thawing as a cell disruption method?
Its a simple procedure and can yield large membrane fragments, which is good for extracting membrane proteins
What are the disadvantages of repeated freezing and thawing as a cell disruption method?
- Its a slow process with low yield
- The formation of ice crystals may damage sensitive proteins.
What are the advantages of enzymatic lysis as a cell disruption method?
It is a gentle procedure that yields large membrane fragments, which is good for extracting membrane proteins
How does detergent based lysis work to disrupt the cell membrane?
Use detergents like sodium lauryl sulfate to solubilize the cell membrane
How does enzymatic lysis work to disrupt the cell membrane?
Use a lysozyme to disrupt the cell membrane.
This process is often used with other techniques like freezing and thawing and osmotic shock
What are the disadvantages of enzymatic lysis as a cell disruption method?
It’s a slow process with low yield