For the past several months, I have been using Bio-Rad’s Poly-Prep Chromatography Columns for preparing immunoglobin-G and glutathione-sepharose columns for protein purification. These disposable columns are made of a translucent plastic and have a 2 ml bed volume and a 10 ml reservoir volume, making them ideal for small-scale chromatography. The bottom of the columns come with a snap-off seal, once this seal is removed, the Leur tip fitting is exposed. Caps are supplied for both the top and bottom of the columns so that they can be packed in advance and stored.
I have been using these columns on a weekly basis for protein purifications and I have never had a problem with them. These columns are resistant to detergents, a wide range of pH and chemical agents like b-mercaptoethanol, dithiothreitol (DTT) and N-ethylmaleimide (NEM) and so I have never observed contamination of my samples with the structural material of the columns. One of the biggest advantages of these columns is that they can also be used as incubation tubes. Once the column prepared, the sample can be held using the two provided caps allowing the columns to be put on a rotating wheel or shaking platform for incubation. Once the incubation is finished the washes and elutions can be performed immediately. This means that centrifugation and aspiration steps are avoided which saves time.
The only negative aspect that I have found for this product has to do with the caps. Every column is supplied with only a single set of caps. If you have to change caps to avoid contamination issues, there are no spares.
Still, this is a minor issue and the flexibility of these columns, which makes them very useful for small-scale protein purification, outweighs this. Moreover, the fact these columns are disposable means that they are perfect for any purification that would require radioactivity. I would have no problem recommending them to anyone.
Fulvio Reggiori, PhD
Postdoctoral fellow
MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology
Cell Biology Department
Cambridge, United Kingdom