Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 24, 2026

Surgical Perfusion and Isolation of the Porcine Pancreas for Islet Isolation
Published on: June 7, 2024
Precipitation of porcine insulin with carbon dioxide
Alexandre Keiji Tashima1, Marcel Ottens, Luuk A M Van der Wielen
1Faculdade de Engenharia Química, Universidade Estadual de Campinas-UNICAMP, Campinas-SP, Brazil.
Abstract:
Recent works have pointed to the use of volatile electrolytes such as carbon dioxide (CO2) dissolved in aqueous solutions as a promising alternative to the precipitating agents conventionally used for protein recovery in the food and pharmaceutical industries. In this work we investigated experimental and theoretical aspects of the precipitation of porcine insulin, a biomolecule of pharmaceutical interest, using CO2 as an acid-precipitating agent. The solubility of porcine insulin in NaHCO3 solutions in pressurized CO2 was determined as a function of temperature and pressure, with a minimum being observed close to the protein isoelectric point. A thermodynamic model was developed and successfully utilized to correlate the experimental data. Insulin was considered a polyelectrolyte in the model and its self-association reactions were also taken into account. The biological activity of insulin was maintained after precipitation with CO2, although some activity can be lost if foam is formed in the depressurization step.
Related Concept Videos
Production of Pharmaceuticals
Insulin: Biosynthesis, Chemistry, and Preparation
Damage or functional impairment of β-cells inhibits insulin production, leading to diabetes. Diabetes treatment primarily uses...
Insulin Secretory Vesicles
