Separation of asymmetrical hybrid hemoglobins by anaerobic cation-exchange high-performance liquid chromatography

Asymmetrical hybrid hemoglobins formed from mixtures of two structurally different hemoglobins were found to be readily separated by cation-exchange high-performance liquid chromatography under anaerobic conditions. When oxyhemoglobins A and S were mixed and deoxygenated, the resulting HPLC chromatogram showed three peaks. The distribution of the three components follow the binomial expansion a² + 2 ab + b² = 1, where a and b are the initial fractions of parent hemoglobins. The middle peak was collected in a test tube saturated with CO gas and reanalyzed under the same experimental conditions. This middle component gave two peaks of equal areas with retention times identical to those of the CO-form of the parent hemoglobins without the appearance of the hybrid hemoglobin band. No intermediate peak was observed in solutions of mixtures of liganded hemoglobins under aerobic conditions. Hybrid hemoglobins AC and SC were also formed when oxyhemoglobins A and C, S and C were mixed, respectively. The separation and the identification of hemoglobins and hybrid hemoglobin employing cation-exchange HPLC can be achieved within 30 min by gradient elution. In addition, the ability to isolate hybrid hemoglobins may be a valuable tool for the study of physical and chemical properties of hybrid hemoglobins.