ABSTRACT
Affinity chromatography encompasses a variety of techniques and is used in many fields. One of the fields in which it is widely used is molecular biology [1-53]. Although standard columns can be employed in such work, molecular biology often utilizes formats that are uncommon elsewhere. For example, packed columns containing protein A are often used in other fields for antibody purification. However, in molecular biology protein A is instead coupled to microbeads and used for immunoprecipitation. These beaded supports have also been combined with fluorescent dyes and flow cytometry to give a method known as a microsphere-bead assay, which can provide detection limits approaching or exceeding those of high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).
