Lab Chromatography | Sartorius

Sartobind® Lab Chromatography Solutions for Research and Development

Chromatography is a powerful technique that is critical for biomolecule purification in many life science workflows.

For laboratory-scale purification and polishing of antibodies, other proteins, nucleic acids and viruses, Sartorius offers a range of chromatography consumables and kits. These feature ready-to-use Sartobind® membranes instead of resins, to support faster and more flexible screening, optimization, and preparative purification.

In addition, the same Sartobind® membranes are available in process-scale capsules and cassettes, providing peace of mind for seamless process transfer to commercial production.
 

Shop Lab Chromatography Products

Chromatography Solutions for Your Workflow

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Ion Exchange Chromatography

A universal technique for purification of most biomolecules:

  • Separate biomolecules based on their net charge
  • Available with anion or cation exchange chemistries
  • For rapid purification or flow-through polishing

Explore IEX Chromatography

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Affinity Chromatography

Offering higher specificity for biologics and tagged proteins:

  • Purify antibodies and his-tagged proteins
  • Available with high-capacity Protein A or IDA ligands
  • For single-step reduction of major contaminants

Explore Affinity Chromatography

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Virus Purification Kits

All-in-one solutions for viral vector purification and concentration:

  • From clarification to pure, concentrated targets
  • Supplied with all required reagents and consumables
  • For high titres without specialist equipment

Explore Virus Purification Kits


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Process Chromatography

Membrane chromatography solutions for the bioprocessing industry:
 

  • Fully scalable capsule and cassette formats
  • Available in a variety of chemistries
  • For GMP-compliant commercial production

Explore Process Chromatography


Sartobind® Membranes Feature:

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vial and syringe
Plug and Play

Eliminate the need for column packing and buffer degassing, and obtain reproducible results, with consumables that are ready-for-use.

Flexibility Built in

Experience reliable purification with a centrifuge, pump, LC system, or no equipment at all, with a range of spin and pressure filter formats.

Rapid Cycling

Purify samples in seconds, not minutes, thanks to convective membranes that enable shorter residence times and faster flow rates.

Productivity Boost

Push the limits of ion exchange and affinity chromatography to prepare the highest possible yield and purity of even the largest molecules.

Process-Ready Technology

Seamlessly transition from research to clinical and commercial production for your most promising targets, with process scale capsules and cassettes.

Benefits of Membrane Chromatography

More Efficient Than Resins

Classical resin chromatography typically requires sophisticated equipment with long set-up times. It is also slow and can suffer from limited yields, especially for larger targets such as viruses. In addition, it can be difficult to scale up resin-based purification from research to commercial production.

To overcome these challenges, Sartorius has developed Sartobind® chromatography membranes. These are available in a choice of formats to provide flexible and reliable purification with or without equipment, and to reduce or even eliminate preparative steps. Convective mass transfer enables shorter residence times, resulting in rapid cycling and higher yields.

What’s more, the same membranes are available in process-scale capsules and cassettes, eliminating uncertainty in the transition from research to manufacturing.
 

Comparing Resin vs Membrane Chromatography

Resins

Membranes

Set-up Time

    Column Packing

Yes

No

    Buffer Degassing

Yes

No

    Sample Pre-filtration

Yes

Yes (in-line)

    

Performance

    Speed

Slow

Up to 10X faster

    Yield

Moderate

5 - 10X higher

    Process-ready

Limited

Yes

Reliable Syringe Purification

Convective Sartobind® lab chromatography supports higher flow rates and operating pressures. This ensures reliable, equipment-free purification without risk of damage to the stationary phase or housing. Syringe purification is ideal for rapid purification at the bench or when access to a dedicated liquid chromatography system is limited.

Watch our video tutorial and download the full protocol for step-by-step instructions to purify your biomolecules by syringe.

Download the Protocol

Application image: A Vivapure spin column being inserted into a centrifuge rotor by a gloved hand.

Options for Rapid Cycling

For higher throughput applications, it is preferable to use parallel processing or automated methods. Sartorius lab chromatography products can be easily integrated into these workflows using your existing equipment.

Vivapure® IEX units are ideal for parallel screening or purification in a benchtop centrifuge. Meanwhile, adapters included with Sartobind® Lab enable direct connection to most liquid chromatography systems without the need for additional accessories.

A Sartobind Lab unit with a Minisart pre-filter connected to a chromatography system

In-Line Sample Prefiltration

It is always advised to pre-filter samples to prolong the lifespan of any chromatography consumable. However, with resin columns, prefiltration must be performed as an additional step before loading.

The Sartobind® Lab system features Luer lock connectors, which enable a Minisart® syringe filter to be connected directly upstream, for in-line filtration during the loading process – two steps in one.

Supporting Products

Vivaclear

Vivaclear

Need to clarify samples before purification with Vivapure®?

Minisart®

Manufactured under high ISO standards in full automation to bring high-quality reliability.

Lab Filtration & Purification Resources

Browse All Resources

Selected Lab Chromatography Resources

Lab Purification: Membrane Chromatography Solutions brochure
Brochure

Lab Chromatography

Discover the full range of Sartorius lab chromatography consumables and kits.

Sartobind® Lab IEX 15, 75 and 100 datasheet cover
Datasheet

Sartobind® IEX Lab

Find the technical specifications and ordering information for pressure filter format IEX units.

Pumps for TFF and Chromatography - Precise Flow Control
Datasheet

Peristaltic Pumps

Choose the right pump for benchtop purification with Sartobind®️ Lab and Vivapure®️

Manuals

Sartobind® Lab and Vivapure® Manuals

Vivapure® Kit Manuals

Frequently Asked Questions

Membrane chromatography is a separation technique used to purify antibodies, other proteins, nucleic acids, and viruses. It works in a similar way to column chromatography but uses macroporous membranes as the stationary phase instead of resins. Choosing to use membrane chromatography can provide several advantages, including easier set-up, faster purification, higher binding capacities, and more options for scale-up.

Sartobind® Lab and Vivapure® are both available with quaternary ammonium (Q) and diethylamine (D) anion exchangers or sulfonic acid (S) cation exchanger. In addition, Sartobind® Lab is available with protein A and iminodiacetic acid (IDA) for affinity purification.

Membrane chromatography can typically replace resin chromatography in most applications. It is suitable for capture purification of antibodies, other proteins, nucleic acids and viruses. Membrane chromatography is also ideal for flowthrough polishing, to remove contaminants such as host cell proteins, DNA, endotoxins and viruses.

Sartobind® Lab units can be used with or without equipment. A syringe or peristaltic pump can be connected directly to the Luer lock inlet for fast purification with minimal setup time. Alternatively, a pair of adapters are included for compatibility with most liquid chromatography systems.

Vivapure® units require a benchtop centrifuge, while the virus purification kits are designed for use with syringes or pumps, depending on the process volumes.

Yes, Sartorius recommends and sells Watson-Marlow pumps for precise flow control for benchtop chromatography.

Unlike with resin chromatography, there is no possibility of air bubbles disrupting Sartobind® membranes. This eliminates the need to degas buffers, saving considerable preparation time.

For optimal biomolecule capture, we recommend equilibration with a buffer similar in composition to the sample to be purified. This is a rapid process that adds only a few seconds to the purification cycle.

Sartobind® Lab units can be reused many times. With proper regeneration and storage, the binding capacity can be maintained for at least 100 cycles.

Vivapure® and the Vivapure® kits are intended for single use.

Yes, it can. A range of process chromatography capsules and cassettes are available. These are already implemented in the manufacturing process for many clinically approved products, are fully scalable, and use the same membranes as the lab chromatography units.

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