"On the Collander equation": protein partitioning in polymer/polymer aqueous two-phase systems
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 6, 2026

Cell Co-culture Patterning Using Aqueous Two-phase Systems
Published on: March 26, 2013
Pedro P Madeira1, José A Teixeira, Eugénia A Macedo
1Laboratory of Separation and Reaction Engineering, Dpt. de Engenharia Química, Faculdade de Engenharia da Universidade do Porto, Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, s/n 4200-465, Porto, Portugal.
Abstract:
Distribution coefficients of randomly selected proteins were measured in aqueous two-phase systems (ATPSs) formed by different combinations of Dextran-75 (Dex), Ficoll-70, polyethylene glycol-8000 (PEG), hydroxypropyl starch-100 (PES), and Ucon50HB5100 (Ucon, a random copolymer of ethylene glycol and propylene glycol) at particular polymer concentrations, all containing 0.15M NaCl in 0.01 M phosphate buffer, pH 7.4. Most of the proteins in the PEG-Ucon system precipitated at the interface. In the other ATPSs, namely, PES-PEG, PES-Ucon, Ficoll-PEG, Ficoll-Ucon, and in Dex-PEG and Dex-Ucon described earlier the distribution coefficients for the proteins were correlated according to the solvent regression equation: lnKi=aiolnKo+bio, where Ki and Ko are the distribution coefficients for any protein in the ith and oth two-phase systems. Coefficients aio and bio are constants, the values of which depend upon the particular compositions of the two-phase systems under comparison.
Related Concept Videos
Extraction: Partition and Distribution Coefficients
For extracting a solute from an aqueous phase into an organic...
Extraction: Effects of pH
Polymers: Molecular Weight Distribution
Analyte Adsorption and Distribution
Cationic Chain-Growth Polymerization: Mechanism
Determination of Molar Masses of Polymers II

