Membrane Preparation

Cell Membranes - Custom Preparation of Cell Membranes from CCS Cell Culture Service

Preparations membranes from cell which are expressing a target receptor, transporter or ion channel at a high density are a useful tool in drug research. Embedded in a membrane fragment or vesicle the proteins remain in a functional native confirmation. Ligand binding assay and functional GTP-gammaS assays can be performed with these preparations providing a good addition to functional cell based assays in drug screening campaigns.

CCS provides the custom preparation membrane proteins in large bulk quantities. More than 1010 cells can be harvested and process in one consistent batch yielding in preparations of about 100 mg of membrane protein sufficient to screen ten-thousands of data points. Cells are disrupted by nitrogen decompression, where the cells are mechanically broken from the inside in a very fast and efficient way. The method is very gentle, because the preparation is not heated at all, oxidation is prevented and cellular compartments are not exposed to continued attrition once the cell is broken.

From this crude homogenates plasma membranes are specifically enriched by a differential centrifugation protocol. Insoluble proteins, nuclei, and mitochondria are eliminated before the cell membranes are separated from the cytosolic extract by ultra high-speed centrifugation. Membranes are supplied in aliquots meeting the individual need of the customers assay.

• Membrane preparations from large cell batches.
• Preparations of high quality and uniformity.