Purification of monoclonal antibodies by simulated moving-bed chromatography

A simulated moving bed (SMB) system has been developed for the biospecific purification of monoclonal antibodies. Adsorption and desorption of the desired product is performed under different conditions. To increase the purity and yield of the antibodies, two purge steps have to be introduced. The steady-state performance of the SMB system was modelled by solving the governing differential equations using a linear driving force approximation. The model parameters were determined independently in batch experiments. They were used to determine the operating conditions of the SMB system for the purification of monoclonal antibodies from cell culture supernatant. The antibodies could be isolated with a yield of > or = 90. SDS gel electrophoresis of the feed and product stream showed that more than 99% of the contaminating proteins were removed in a single step by SMB chromatography.