Immobilized ligands of high stability: Hydroxyalkyl methacrylate gel conjugates with oligo- and polypeptides

The long-time stability of conjugates prepared from epoxy derivatives of hydroxyalkyl methacrylate gels and peptides or proteins has been investigated at various pH values. These conjugates were found to be extremely stable. The observed slow release of nitrogen is due mainly to a splitting of the peptide bond adjacent to the covalent bond anchoring the peptide to the matrix. This peptide bond is partially labilized by microenvironmental influences of the matrix. Since in all experiments only a fraction of the immobilized ligand became detached, it is suggested that there is a subpopulation of fixed ligands which are susceptible to a matrix-induced bond splitting.