Scalable dual column cation exchange affinity chromatography based platform process for recombinant protein purification

A novel tandem affinity tag is presented that enables the use of cation exchange resins for initial affinity purification, followed by an additional column step for enhanced purity and affinity tag self-removal. In this method, the highly charged heparin-binding tag binds strongly and selectively to either a strong or weak cation exchange resin based on electrostatic interactions, effectively acting as an initial affinity tag. Combining the heparin-binding tag (HB-tag) with the self-removing iCapTag™ provides a means for removing both tags in a subsequent self-cleaving step. The result is a convenient platform for the purification of diverse tagless proteins with a range of isoelectric points and molecular weights. In this work, we demonstrate a dual column process in which the tagged protein of interest is first captured from an E. coli cell lysate using a cation exchange column via a fused heparin-binding affinity tag. The partially purified protein is then diluted and loaded onto an iCapTag™ split-intein column, washed, and then incubated overnight to release the tagless target protein from the bound tag. Case studies are provided for enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP), beta galactosidase (βgal), maltose binding protein (MBP) and beta lactamase (βlac), where overall purity and host cell DNA clearance is provided. Overall, the proposed dual column process is shown to be a scalable platform technology capable of accessing both the high dynamic binding capacity of ion exchange resins and the high selectivity of affinity tags for the purification of recombinant proteins.