Varian, Inc. (Nasdaq:VARI) today announced
the development of a new column phase material that will help
pharmaceutical manufacturers quickly and efficiently scale up the
purification of experimental compounds through production
quantities of active drug ingredients. The ultra-high purity silica
phase material, OmniSpher™ 10 C18, is designed for preparative
high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). It is optimized
for use with Varian's Dynamax preparative HPLC column
technology.
Preparative chromatography is a separation technique used for
purifying active ingredient pharmaceutical compounds and
bio-molecules used in drug discovery and manufacture. Mixtures
are injected through a column containing specially sized and
shaped silica particles, known as stationary phase. The results of
this process are recovered or purified compounds.
"Varian, Inc. is the only single-source supplier of total preparative
chromatography solutions. These solutions range from stationary
phases and column technology to a complete range of preparative
chromatography systems - from flash through high-volume
manufacture," said Garry Rogerson, senior vice president,
Scientific Instruments, Varian, Inc. "By ensuring that these
elements work together seamlessly, Varian is helping
pharmaceutical firms move promising compounds more quickly
from lab bench and testing to production."
The technique is used in three different drug discovery and
manufacturing steps: rapid or flash purification of experimental
compounds during laboratory research; recovery of compounds in
sufficient quantities for drug testing and clinical trials; and the
high-volume purification of small organic molecules and
bio-molecules for pharmaceutical manufacture. Generally
speaking, the methods for preparative chromatography are first
developed on analytical HPLC columns.