Combined use of ion-exchange chromatography and ethanol fractionation in purification of canine and feline plasma albumin

Albumin is the most abundant protein in a plasma having numerous roles in both health and disease. Along with regulating the oncotic pressure, albumin transports free fatty acids, bilirubin, heavy metal ions, hormones, vitamins and many organic molecules having a biological function. Any level of deficiency in albumin levels ultimately leads to serious disturbances in metabolism. Thus, purified human albumin solutions frequently used in human medicine. Even the function of the albumin is similar across the species, the antigenic diversity comes as a limiting factor for its possible use in veterinary medicine. In our study, we purified albumin from the plasma pool of cat and dogs. The individual samples are taken from the animals that are admitted to the faculty clinics and found to be healthy according to the clinical investigation. The ion chromatography followed by ethanol precipitation technique was utilized for the purification process. The combined procedure allowed to purify albumin in each species greater than 95%. It is thought that this approach can also be used for therapeutic purposes in veterinary medicine to overcome the limitations of using purified human albumin