Most biological pharmaceuticals such as proteins, peptides and oligonucleotides are supplied as aqueous solution or lyophilized solids. To date, insulin is the only biologic available in a crystalline formulation.
A crystalline formulation has some advantages over its amorphous counterpart, including high concentration and high purity: In the crystalline form, the protein molecules exist in the most concentrated form and retain an active conformation. Second, a crystalline formulation offers the possibility of controlled release because the dissolution rate in aqueous solution is low relative to the amorphous material. Third, crystalline material may offer greater physical and chemical stability than liquid solutions or the amorphous state due to higher purity, its more compact molecular arrangement and restricted molecular motion.
Our expert scientists offer crystallization screening using a variety of crystallization techniques. We conduct initial screening on a small scale using various vapor diffusion techniques (sitting drop, hanging drop, sandwich drop and capillary) and batch crystallization techniques (slow evaporation, fast evaporation and anti-solvent precipitation). We further optimize and scale up the conditions in which crystallization occurs. The batch crystallization process can also be applied to large-scale purification.
We also use these crystallization techniques for single crystal growth of proteins and peptides for 3-D structure determination.
Contact our solid state services team at SSCI by clicking below