Oligonucleotide separations technology

Waters has introduced two sets of columns for the purification and analysis of oligonucleotides. The Acquity UPLC OST C18 columns have been specifically designed to work with the Waters family of Acquity UltraPerformance LC products. The XBridge OST C18 columns are designed for advanced oligonucleotide HPLC separations. Both products are suitable for purifying and analysing synthetic oligonucleotides including siRNA, primers and probes, therapeutic drugs made by oligonucleotide manufacturers, diagnostic kit makers, government and university laboratories, and biotechnology companies.

The columns feature sub-3 micron bridge ethyl hybrid (BEH) particle technology and are claimed to yield better resolution for ion-pair, reversed-phase separations of oligonucleotides than commercially-available columns for the same application. The 1.7 µm particle Acquity UPLC OST columns, besides offering improved resolution, offer scientists the speed and sample throughput they have come to expect from Waters UPLC technology.

In tests conducted at key accounts before launch, scientists were able to see up to a four-fold improvement in speed of analysis without any diminishment in resolution. In one case, a firm with a 60 min reversed-phase HPLC assay featuring 48 injections (48 h worth of work) for a 44mer oligonucleotide reduced its total analysis time to 12 h. Other accounts that tested the columns realised similar productivity gains. Lifetime expectancy of the new columns is greater than 1000 injections.

Other recently introduced columns in the Waters BEH particle technology line include columns for peptide and amino acid analysis.