Alessandro Butté

Kinetics of “living” free radical polymerization

Abstract ‘Living” free-radical polymerization (LFRP) of styrene is usually performed following two different reaction procedures: by TEMPO-mediated LFRP or by atom transfer radical polymerization. The main difference between the previous two processes is related to how the exchange between the active and the dormant state of the polymer chains is performed. A mathematical model suitable for handling both processes is presented. Its validation has been performed by comparison with experimental data taken both from the literature and from our laboratory. These comparisons are intended to cover the most significant reaction conditions a LFRP of styrene can offer. In spite of a limited parameter fitting, the general reliability of the model has been confirmed. Thus, the model is thought to have a potential in designing the proper conditions to improve the LFRP.

Role of the ligand density in cation exchange materials for the purification of proteins

The performance of functionalized materials, such as cation exchange resins, is dependent not only on the ligand type and ligand density, but also on the pore accessibility of the target molecule. In the case of large molecules such as antibodies this latter parameter becomes crucial, because the size of such molecules falls somewhere inside the pore size distribution of the resin. The influence of the ligand density and accessibility on the overall performance of the material is explored systematically. Five different materials, having the same chemistry as the strong cation exchange resin Fractogel EMD SO(3)(-) (M) , have been analyzed. These materials only differ in the ligand density. It is shown that the ligand density directly influences the porosity of the materials as well as the pore diffusivity and the dynamic binding capacity. For a given purification problem an optimal ligand density can be found. Based on the above results a new material is proposed, showing superior properties in terms of dynamic binding capacity. This is achieved by an optimization of the ligand density and by a decrease of the particle size of the stationary phase. The material properties are modeled with a general rate model. Further simulations were conducted to evaluate the performance of the new material in comparison with a conventional resin.

Chromatographic behavior of a polyclonal antibody mixture on a strong cation exchanger column. Part II: Adsorption modelling.

The adsorption of a polyclonal IgG mixture on a strong cation exchanger column is characterized using a detailed multi-component pore model. This model is explicit in all transport parameters and includes salt dependent isotherms. As discussed in the first part of this work, the IgG mixture can be simplified by considering two pseudo-variants only. Linear gradient experiments are used to fit the salt dependent adsorption isotherms and the mass transport parameters for the two pseudo-variants. Using the model, breakthrough curves are predicted with good accuracy. The model is also implemented to visualize the axial and radial concentration profiles of the two pseudo-variants in the column during a loading experiment.

Model-based design space determination of peptide chromatographic purification processes

Operating a chemical process at fixed operating conditions often leads to suboptimal process performances. It is important in fact to be able to vary the process operating conditions depending upon possible changes in feed composition, products requirements or economics. This flexibility in the manufacturing process was facilitated by the publication of the PAT initiative from the U.S. FDA [1]. In this work, the implementation of Quality-by-design in the development of a chromatographic purification process is discussed. A procedure to determine the design space of the process using chromatographic modeling is presented. Moreover, the risk of batch failure and the critical process parameters (CPP) are assessed by modeling. The ideal cut strategy is adopted and therefore only yield and productivity are considered as critical quality attributes (CQA). The general trends in CQA variations within the design space are discussed. The effect of process disturbances is also considered. It is shown that process disturbances significantly decrease the design space and that only simultaneous and specific changes in multiple process parameters (i.e. critical process parameters (CPP) lead to batch failure. The reliability of the obtained results is proven by comparing the model predictions to suitable experimental data. The case study presented in this work proves the reliability of process development using a model-based approach.

Preparative weak cation-exchange chromatography of monoclonal antibody variants: I. Single-component adsorption

The retention behavior of a monoclonal antibody has been characterized on a weak cation exchanger, Fractogel EMD COO(-)(s). This new generation of resin materials comprise of a higher mechanical strength compared to softer gel-type matrices while maintaining elevated capacities, resulting in higher productivity and longer lifetimes. These parameters are extremely important when working with large bio-molecules such as proteins, and in particular monoclonal antibodies. In the first part of this work a parameter estimation strategy is presented to fully characterize the retention behavior of a single monoclonal antibody and determine suitable model parameters. Literature correlations were used for the estimation of mass transfer rates. The transport limiting parameter, pore diffusion, was regressed experimentally. Various methods for the adsorption isotherm determination have been applied, their combinations resulting in little experimental effort and accurate predictions of elution profiles. The process has been modelled with a complete pore diffusion model and the agreement between experimental and predicted profiles is good in general. However, a very marked sensitivity to changes in the effective pore diffusion coefficient has been observed. A correlation describing the effect of the separation conditions on the diffusion rate is therefore needed in order to have a fully predictive mathematical model.

Behavior of human serum albumin on strong cation exchange resins: I. experimental analysis.

Experiments with human serum albumin on the strong cation exchange resin Fractogel EMD SE Hicap (M) were carried out. Even though human serum albumin was used at high purity, two peaks in gradient elution experiments occurred. The obtained data can be explained by considering that human serum albumin binds to Fractogel EMD SE Hicap (M) in two different binding conformations: the protein adsorbs instantaneously in the first conformation and then changes into the second one with a kinetic limitation. The two-peak behavior of human serum albumin was analyzed in detail, especially at various gradient lengths, concentrations and temperatures. Breakthrough curves were performed at four modifier concentrations and three velocities. The characteristic adsorption behavior, found for gradient experiments, was confirmed by the breakthrough curves. The two-peak elution pattern of human serum albumin was also found for other strong cation exchange resins, but not for weak cation exchange resins. It is concluded that the described behavior is peculiar for the interaction of human serum albumin with the strong cation exchange ligand of the resin.

Model-based design of peptide chromatographic purification processes

In this work we present a general procedure for the model-based optimization of a polypeptide crude mixture purification process through its application to a case of industrial relevance. This is done to show how much modeling can be beneficial to optimize complex chromatographic processes in the industrial environment. The target peptide elution profile was modeled with a two sites adsorption equilibrium isotherm exhibiting two inflection points. The variation of the isotherm parameters with the modifier concentration was accounted for. The adsorption isotherm parameters of the target peptide were obtained by the inverse method. The elution of the impurities was approximated by lumping them into pseudo-impurities and by regressing their adsorption isotherm parameters directly as a function of the corresponding parameters of the target peptide. After model calibration and validation by comparison with suitable experimental data, Pareto optimizations of the process were carried out so as to select the optimal batch process.

Behavior of human serum albumin on strong cation exchange resins: II. Model analysis

Experiments with human serum albumin on a strong cation exchange resin exhibit a peculiar elution pattern: the protein elutes with two peaks in a modifier gradient. This behavior is modeled with a general rate model, where the two elution peaks are modeled with two binding conformations, one of which is at equilibrium conditions, while for the other, the adsorption process is rate limited. Isocratic experiments under nonadsorbing conditions were used to characterize the mass transfer process. The isotherm of both adsorption conformations as well as the kinetic of adsorption and desorption for the second conformation are functions of the modifier concentration. They are evaluated with linear modifier gradient experiments and step experiments with various adsorption times. All experimental features are well reproduced by the proposed modified general rate model.

Parallel experimental design and multivariate analysis provides efficient screening of cell culture media supplements to improve Biosimilar product quality

Rational and high‐throughput optimization of mammalian cell culture media has a great potential to modulate recombinant protein product quality. We present a process design method based on parallel design‐of‐experiment (DoE) of CHO fed‐batch cultures in 96‐deepwell plates to modulate monoclonal antibody (mAb) glycosylation using medium supplements. To reduce the risk of losing valuable information in an intricate joint screening, 17 compounds were separated into five different groups, considering their mode of biological action. The concentration ranges of the medium supplements were defined according to information encountered in the literature and in‐house experience. The screening experiments produced wide glycosylation pattern ranges. Multivariate analysis including principal component analysis and decision trees was used to select the best performing glycosylation modulators. Subsequent D‐optimal quadratic design with four factors (three promising compounds and temperature shift) in shake tubes confirmed the outcome of the selection process and provided a solid basis for sequential process development at a larger scale. The glycosylation profile with respect to the specifications for biosimilarity was greatly improved in shake tube experiments: 75% of the conditions were equally close or closer to the specifications for biosimilarity than the best 25% in 96‐deepwell plates. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2017;114: 1448–1458.

Purification of a modified cyclosporine A by co-current centrifugal partition chromatography: process development and intensification.

Synthetic hydrophobic non-ionizable peptides are not soluble in most common solvents and are thus difficult to purify by preparative reversed-phase HPLC, normally used for industrial production. The challenge exists to develop alternative purification chromatographic processes using suitable solvents and providing good yields, high purity and sufficient productivity. A 11mer hydrophobic synthetic modified cyclosporine, showing an anti-HIV activity, was successfully purified by centrifugal partition chromatography using the biphasic solvent system heptane/ethyl acetate/acetone/methanol/water (1:2:2:1:2, v/v). A 5% co-current elution - made possible by the liquid nature of the two phases - has been used in order to avoid hydrodynamic instabilities mainly due to the physico-chemical properties of the target peptide. This original solution was developed after the study of the effect of the peptide on the hydrodynamic behavior of the two phases during the separation, and the visualization of the flow patterns using the Visual-CPC device. Critical impurities were efficiently eliminated and the peptide was recovered in high yield and high productivity achieving the specifications requirements.