Vaccine pretreatment for quantification of 146S antigen in foot-and-mouth disease vaccines by high performance size exclusion chromatography

Abstract:

We developed a pre-treatment method to remove interfering substances during quantification of 146S antigens in foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) vaccines by high performance size exclusion chromatography (HPSEC). Three methods, including ultracentrifugation, PEG precipitation and nuclease digestion, were optimized and compared for removal efficiency of the interfering impurities in FMD vaccines. Under optimized conditions, the 146S contents in two batches of FMD vaccines were determined to be 7.1 and 7.6 μg/mL by ultracentrifugation, 9.7 and 10.4 μg/mL by PEG precipitation, and 10.5 and 10.4 μg/mL by nuclease digestion. The optimal condition for nuclease digestion using Benzonase determined by response surface method was as follows: appending Benzonase into 200 μL of antigen phase to a final concentration of 421 U/mL and incubating at 25.1 °C for 1.29 h. This method has advantages including efficient removal of the interfering impurities, fast processing speed, and mild operating conditions. Then 12 bathes of FMD vaccines with different serotypes produced by 4 manufacturers were tested to verify the established treatment method. Results showed the method was applicable to various FMD vaccines with good reproducibility (RSD<5.3%, n=3). The developed method removed interference from impurities during quantification of 146S, and therefore would broaden the application of HPSEC in vaccine quality control and ensure the accuracy and reliability.