Intensive Ion Exchange Process for Soluble Proteins Recovery from Industrial Alfalfa Green Juice

摘要

Juice expressed from alfalfa (Medicago sativa) has a high protein content. Rubisco (Ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase) is the main soluble protein of alfalfa juice with potential applications in many fields, such as human nutrition, pharmaceuticals, environmental... In order to recover Rubisco, an ion-exchange process in expanded bed mode (EBA) was studied. The expanded bed allows the treatment of crude extracts, and charged and viscous solutions. The anionic resin Q Hyper Z, especially developed for protein separation in such a process, was used. Juices at different Rubisco concentrations and ionic strengths were treated. Breakthrough curves and dynamic capacity at 10% (Q10%) were determined for each experiment. Results showed that the working capacities are significant, even when Q10% decreases for highly concentrated solutions. Finally, optimal elution conditions were analyzed. The application of 0.5 M NaCl in fixed bed mode at very small throughput produced high concentrated fractions with good purity.