Surface affinity chromatography of human peripheral blood cells

Column packings with chemically bonded polyethylene glycol (PEG) and polypropylene glycol (PPG) were prepared and the separation of human peripheral blood cells by an aqueous polymeric two phase system could be performed in a partition chromatography. In this chromatographic system, the interaction of blood cells with bonded PEG, PPG stationary phases is apparently selective, and granulocytes and lymphocytes are more strongly retained on the column than erythrocytes and platelets. The hydrophobic interactions between the hydrophobic region on the cell surface membrane and the bonded PEG, PPG phases is probably the main factor affecting the retention of lymphocytes and granulocytes. The selective separation of human peripheral platelets, granulocytes and lymphocytes was investigated using another type of column packing bonded with methoxyethoxymethyl (MEM) groups. The isolation of platelets and lymphocytes from human leukocyte-rich plasma was performed with a MEM-Sephadex column and elution with 0.27 M sucrose solution. Platelets could be selectively collected from the same column by elution with 0.31 M methyl-alpha-D-mannoside at the high recovery of 100%.