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Martin Allen

Publications and source records attributed to Martin Allen.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

Antibody variable region interactions with Protein A: implications for the development of generic purification processes.

In this paper, a wide range of antibodies from various subclasses and subfamilies are employed to evaluate the creation of generic separation processes using Protein A chromatography. The reasons for elution pH differences amongst several IgG1s, IgG2s, antibody fragments, and Fc-fusion proteins during Protein A chromatography are investigated using several complimentary techniques. The results indicate that variable region interactions play a major role in determining elution pH for VH3 subfamily antibodies while using traditional protein A chromatographic materials. On the other hand, experiments with a resin which employs a ligand consisting solely of B domain of Protein A indicate that variable region interactions can be mitigated, enabling the use of a single elution pH for a range of antibodies. Finally, the moderation of elution conditions associated with this engineered ligand are shown to minimize problems associated with low pH induced aggregation. It is expected that the findings reported in this paper will facilitate faster process development cycle times for this important class of human therapeutics.

Animals↗

Enhanced UV exposure on a ski-field compared with exposures at sea level.

Personal erythemal UV monitoring badges, which were developed to monitor the UV exposure of school children, were used to measure UV exposures received by one of the authors (MA) at the Mt Hutt ski-field, in New Zealand. These were then compared with measurements taken at the same times from a nearby sea level site in Christchurch city. The badges were designed to give instantaneous readings of erythemally-weighted (i.e., "sun burning") UV radiation and were cross-calibrated against meteorological grade UV instruments maintained by the National Institute of Water & Atmospheric Research (NIWA). All skiing and calibration days were clear and almost exclusively cloud free. It was found that the UV maxima for horizontal surfaces at the ski-field (altitude approximately 2 km) were 20-30% greater than at the low altitude site. Larger differences between the sites were observed when the sensor was oriented perpendicular to the sun. The personal doses of UV received by a sensor on the skier's lapel during two days of skiing activity were less than those received by a stationary detector on a horizontal surface near sea level. The exposures depended strongly on the time of year, and in mid-October the maximum UV intensity on the ski-field was 60% greater than in mid-September. The UV exposure levels experienced during skiing were smaller than the summer maxima at low altitudes.

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