Large Scale Applications

APL helps pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, looking for ways to better manage their efforts to increase productivity. By simplifying processing methodologies and using more efficient resins, downstream purification processes become more efficient.

The chromatographic column method is clearly advantageous on a small, laboratory scale. On scaling up, however, column methods quickly reach their limitations, especially when facing requirements of processing tens of thousands of liters per day of biological broths, which in many instances contain minute quantities of target biomolecules. APL’s Orbicell® based technology on the other hand, bypasses critical, column packing and conditioning stages, and goes directly into contacting target biomolecules with Orbicell® Bioresin in suspension, allowing the affinity ligands on the bead surfaces to capture the desired substrate molecules. This contact phase occurs within 45 minutes to two hours. Each of the following steps of concentrating the bead suspensions, washing out the contaminants, eluting the target product, followed by concentration of the final eluate, is accomplished in the course of a few hours. The total processing times strictly depend on using adequately sized pumps, piping and filter area, or on centrifuge capacity, if one is used instead of filters.

APL’s Orbicell® technology greatly reduces purification costs, creating pricing advantages in large-scale operations. With narrowing profit margins, in part due to inadequate purification systems, the APL’s technological innovation is ideal for many companies that today perform purifications of biomolecules on a large scale.