Adsorption and recovery of hen egg white lysozyme on functionalized mesoporous silica SBA-15.

• Main Author: Lin, Dashun.
• Other Authors: Susanna Leong Su Jan
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2009
• Subjects: DRNTU::Engineering::Chemical engineering::Biotechnology
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/16783
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

The aim of the experiment is to investigate the adsorption and recovery of Lysozyme, in various conformational states, on mesoporous silica SBA-15. The mesoporous silica investigated has the following characteristics: they are functionalized with amine and thiol functional groups in various molarities, and the pore size of the silica particles were customized to be 5.0 nm. To determine the concentration of Lysozyme, samples were collected at specific stages: initial, post-adsorption and post-elution. Protein assay using the Bradford Reagent was performed and the absorbance of the samples taken using a biospectrophotometer. By arranging the readings into appropriate forms, an insight regarding the extent of protein adsorption on the silica and recovery from the silica was gained. The adsorption and recovery of Lysozyme was found to be largely dependent on the electrostatic attraction between the positively charged protein and the negatively charged functional groups of the silica. To a certain extent, protein shape played a role in the adsorption process. On the other hand, the recovery of proteins also relied on the surface moiety of the silica.