Influence of Salts on the Adsorption of Lysozyme on a Mixed-Mode Resin

Mixed-mode chromatography (MMC), which combines features of ion exchange chromatography (IEC) and hydrophobic interaction chromatography (HIC), is an interesting method for protein separation and purification. The design of MMC processes is challenging as adsorption equilibria are influenced by many parameters, including ionic strength and the presence of different salts in solution. Systematic studies on the influence of those parameters in MMC are rare. Therefore, in the present work, the influence of four salts, namely, sodium chloride, sodium sulfate, ammonium chloride, and ammonium sulfate, on the adsorption of lysozyme on the mixed-mode resin Toyopearl MX-Trp-650M at pH 7.0 and 25°C was studied systematically in equilibrium adsorption experiments for ionic strengths between 0 mM and 3000 mM. For all salts, a noticeable adsorption strength was observed over the entire range of studied ionic strengths. An exponential decay of the loading of the resin with increasing ionic strength was found until approx. 1000 mM. For higher ionic strengths, the loading was found to be practically independent of the ionic strength. At constant ionic strength, the highest lysozyme loadings were observed for ammonium sulfate, the lowest for sodium chloride. A mathematical model was developed that correctly describes the influence of the ionic strength as well as the influence of the studied salts. The model is the first that enables the prediction of adsorption isotherms of proteins on mixed-mode resins in a wide range of technically interesting conditions, accounting for the influence of the ionic strength and four salts of practical relevance.