The applications of reactive dyes in enzyme and protein downstream processing

Downstream processing of proteins is often a key factor in the overall process of satisfying product specifications and meeting current commercial demands. In this context, affinity chromatography and other techniques based on the affinity concept have revolutionized protein purification technology, although they have failed to demonstrate their broader applicability at the process scale. On the other hand, reactive dyes offer many advantages as pseudoaffinity media and in many occasions have successfully circumvented problems associated with conventional affinity ligands. The main features of reactive dyes include their broad spectrum of interaction with proteins, low cost, ready availability, high reactivity, ease of immobilization, and both biological and chemical stability. Consequently, dye-ligand media now find application in both analytical and process-scale purification of proteins by techniques such as low- and high-pressure performance affinity chromatography, affinity partitioning, and affinity precipitation.