Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate-capillary Gel Electrophoresis Research Articles

Ferritin microheterogeneity, subunit composition, functional, and physiological implications

Ferritin is a ubiquitous intracellular iron storage protein that plays a crucial role in iron homeostasis. Animal tissue ferritins consist of multiple isoforms (or isoferritins) with different proportions of H and L subunits that contribute to their structural and compositional heterogeneity, and thus physiological functions. Using size exclusion and anion exchange chromatography, capillary isoelectric focusing (cIEF), and SDS-capillary gel electrophoresis (SDS-CGE), we reveal for the first time a significant variation in ferritin subunit composition and isoelectric points, in both recombinant and native ferritins extracted from animal organs. Our results indicate that subunits composition is the main determinant of the mean pI of recombinant ferritin heteropolymers, and that ferritin microheterogeneity is a common property of both natural and recombinant proteins and appears to be an intrinsic feature of the cellular machinery during ferritin expression, regulation, post-translational modifications, and post-subunits assembly. The functional significance and physiological implications of ferritin heterogeneity in terms of iron metabolism, response to oxidative stress, tissue-specific functions, and pathological processes are discussed.

Size separation of sodium dodecyl sulfate-proteins by capillary electrophoresis in dilute and ultra-dilute dextran solutions.

SDS capillary gel electrophoresis is a widely used in the biopharma and the biomedical fields for rapid size separation of proteins. However, very limited information is available on the use of dilute and ultra-dilute sieving matrices for SDS-protein analysis. Here, background electrolytes (BGEs) containing 1%-0% dextran were used in borate-based BGE to separate a protein sizing ladder (PSL)≤225kDa and the intact and subunit forms of a therapeutic monoclonal antibody (mAb). The separation performance for the PSL and mAb components differed significantly with decreasing dextran concentration. Ferguson and reptation plots were used to elucidate the separation mechanism. Highly diluted dextran solutions resulted in linear Ferguson plots for both solute types (cf. Ogston theory) in spite of this model assumes a rigid pore structure, thus cannot describe the separation mechanism in ultra-dilute polymer solutions with no reticulations. The saddle differences between the resolution of the PSL and the intact/subunit mAb forms in ultra-dilute dextran-borate matrices suggested the importance of shape selectivity, manifested by the adequate separation of the SDS covered intact as well as light and heavy chain subunits of the therapeutic mAb even at zero dextran concentration.

Analysis of Peptides and Proteins by Native and SDS Capillary Gel Electrophoresis Coupled to Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometry via a Closed-Circuit Coaxial Sheath Flow Reactor Interface.

A simple and widely applicable coaxial sheath flow reactor interface (CSFRI) is introduced for easy and robust connection of liquid-phase microseparation methods to mass spectrometric detection, especially for capillary gel electrophoresis analysis of proteins and peptides including SDS-protein complexes. The interface readily accommodated post-column reactions prior to MS detection. It was demonstrated that this novel closed-circuit connection allowed the utilization of non-MS friendly buffer components without significant ion suppression and supported stable electrospray. In SDS capillary agarose gel electrophoresis mode, addition of γ-cyclodextrin to the sheath liquid efficiently removed the SDS content of the sample and the background electrolyte in the flow reactor section by inclusion complexation, while maintaining good separation efficiency and decreasing ion suppression.

Electromigration Dispersion in Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate Capillary Gel Electrophoresis of Proteins

The electromigration dispersion of the light- and heavy-chain subunit peaks of the therapeutic monoclonal antibody omalizumab was investigated in sodium dodecyl sulfate capillary gel electrophoresis (SDS-CGE) using borate cross-linked dextran sieving matrices. Increasing boric acid content (340-640 mM) caused electromigration dispersion shifts for both low (2%)- and high (10%)-dextran-concentration gels in all gel-buffer compositions. In case of the heavy-chain fragment, elevated borate concentrations resulted in decreasing tailing and increasing fronting with the use of higher- and lower-dextran-concentration gels, respectively. The light-chain fragment, on the other hand, exhibited increased fronting with increasing borate concentration for both dextran concentrations examined in this study. Increase of the glycerol ingredient level in the gel-buffer system caused the same effect as the increasing borate concentration in both dextran concentrations. The detected electromigration dispersion was considered as the result of the formation of monomeric and dimeric glycerol-borate complexes as co-ionic constituents, migrating slower than that of the unconjugated tetrahydroxyborate. In addition, complexation of the tetrahydroxyborate anion with the glucose building blocks of the dextran polymer decreased its mobility to practically zero, contributing to further decrease in the resultant effective mobility of the co-ionic species. We suggest that the observed fronting and/or tailing peak shapes of the monoclonal antibody fragments in SDS-CGE at increasing boric acid concentrations can be considered as the result of multiple effects including changes in pH, sieving matrix pore size, viscosity, and the mobility variation of the co-ionic borate adducts with the gel-buffer ingredients. While electromigration dispersion-mediated band broadening, in general, can be minimized via matching the effective mobility of the co-ionic species to the analyte molecules of interest, in case of borate cross-linked dextran gels, optimization of the boric acid concentration required special consideration of its gel cross-linking function. For the light- and heavy-chain fragments of the IgG analyte, best peak shapes were attained with the use of 10% dextran/340 mM boric acid and 10% dextran/640 mM boric acid-containing gel-buffer systems, respectively. Based on this observation, here we introduce the concept of borate-gradient-mediated transient mobility matching in SDS-CGE of proteins. This novel approach resulted in close to optimal peak shapes for the distantly migrating IgG subunits within a single run, as well as unraveled the long-sought possible solution to perform capillary pore-size-gradient gel electrophoresis.

Sodium dodecyl sulfate-capillary gel electrophoresis with native fluorescence detection for analysis of therapeutic proteins

A 280 nm light-emitting diode (LED) was used as the excitation source for native fluorescence detection (NFD) of proteins in capillary electrophoresis. The NFD scheme was evaluated in sodium dodecyl sulfate-capillary gel electrophoresis (SDS-CGE) for monoclonal antibody (mAb) characterization. Utilizing a technique by which we filtered the LED emission through a 280 nm bandpass filter, we were able to increase overall concentration sensitivity of SDS-CGE-NFD ~2.3-fold. Under the optimized conditions, the assay linear dynamic range was > 4 orders of magnitude with a correlation coefficient (r2) of 0.9999, and the limit of detection was 8.3 ng/mL. The SDS-CGE-NFD assay was applied to quantitation and purity analysis of Etanercept, a therapeutic protein. Over the range of 50 – 150% of the target concentration, 200 µg/mL, recoveries were in the range of 97.02 – 101.6%. The SDS-CGE-NFD assay allowed for simultaneous quantitation of high- and low-molecular-weight species in Etanercept.

Native fluorescence detection with a laser driven light source for protein analysis in capillary electrophoresis

While ultraviolet light (UV) absorbance detection is the most widely used detection mode in capillary electrophoresis (CE), it can yield poor concentration sensitivity and has tendencies to exhibit baseline fluctuations. In order to overcome these challenges, alternative detection strategies, including the use of dedicated wavelength lasers, have been applied, resulting in enhancements of concentration sensitivity as well as decreased baseline disturbance. In this work, using a laser driven light source for excitation, we reported a native fluorescence detection (NFD) scheme for use in a commercial CE platform, PA 800 Plus Pharmaceutical Analysis System, for protein analysis. The CE-NFD system was characterized using tryptophan and a reduced IgG. We compared NFD with UV absorbance detection as applied to sodium dodecyl sulfate-capillary gel electrophoresis (SDS-CGE) and capillary isoelectric focusing (cIEF). In SDS-CGE, with the reported NFD a non-reduced IgG standard sample yielded a signal-to-noise ratio which was 14.6 times higher than with UV absorbance detection at 214 nm. In cIEF analysis of NISTmAb, Humanized IgG1k, with NFD ∼170 times less sample mass was needed to obtain similar profile quality to that with UV absorbance detection at 280 nm. NFD also eliminated baseline anomalies observed with UV absorbance detection and showed less interference by other absorbing species. These results suggest that CE-NFD is a practical and powerful tool for protein characterization in the biopharmaceutical industry.

Fundamentals of Capillary Electrophoretic Migration and Separation of SDS Proteins in Borate Cross-Linked Dextran Gels.

Recent progress in the development and production of new, innovative protein therapeutics require rapid and adjustable high-resolution bioseparation techniques. Sodium dodecyl sulfate capillary gel electrophoresis (SDS-CGE) using a borate (B) cross-linked dextran (D) separation matrix is widely employed today for rapid consistency analysis of therapeutic proteins in manufacturing and release testing. Transient borate cross-linking of the semirigid dextran polymer chains leads to a high-resolution separation gel for SDS-protein complexes. To understand the migration and separation basis of the D/B gel, the present work explores various gel formulations of dextran monomer (2, 5, 7.5, and 10%) and borate cross-linker (2 and 4%) concentrations. Ferguson plots were analyzed for a mixture of protein standards with molecular weights ranging from 20 to 225 kDa, and the resulting nonlinear concave curves pointed to nonclassical sieving behavior. While the 2% D/4% B gel resulted in the fastest analysis time, the 10% D/2% B gel was found to produce the greatest separation window, even higher than with the 10% D/4% B gel, due to a significant increase in the electroosmotic flow of the former composition in the direction opposite to SDS-protein complex migration. The study then focused on SDS-CGE separation of a therapeutic monoclonal antibody and its subunits. A combination of molecular weight and shape selectivity as well as, to a lesser extent, surface charge density differences (due to glycosylation on the heavy chain) influenced migration. Greater molecular weight selectivity occurred for the higher monomer concentration gels, while improved glycoselectivity was obtained using a more dilute gel, even as low as 2% D/2% B. This latter gel took advantage of the dextran-borate-glycoprotein complexation. The study revealed that by modulating the dextran (monomer) and borate (cross-linker) concentration ratios of the sieving matrix, one can optimize the separation for specific biopharmaceutical modalities with excellent column-to-column, run-to-run, and gel-to-gel migration time reproducibilities (<0.96% relative standard deviation (RSD)). The widely used 10% dextran/4% borate gel represents a good screening option, which can then be followed by a modified composition, optimized for a specific separation as necessary.

Multilevel capillary gel electrophoresis characterization of new antibody modalities

Capillary gel electrophoresis-based methods were applied to comprehensively characterize two development phase new modality monoclonal antibodies including a glycoengineered and a bispecific test compound. The samples were subjected to multilevel characterization at the intact (both by SDS-SGE and cIEF) as well as the reduced protein and the released N-glycan levels. SDS capillary gel electrophoresis analysis showed excellent separation of the light and heavy chains of both samples. The bispecific antibody required a special temperature gradient denaturation process and a longer capillary to resolve its two light chain fragments. Separation of PNGase F digested antibodies revealed migration time shifts, suggesting the presence of N-linked glycosylation on the corresponding subunits. For efficient glycan removal, the highly glycosylated glycoengineered monoclonal antibody was trypsin digested prior to the endoglycosidase treatment. The released glycans were profiled by capillary gel electrophoresis after APTS labeling and their oligosaccharide structures were identified by exoglycosidase based carbohydrate sequencing. Finally, capillary isoelectric focusing shed light on the charge heterogeneity of the test compounds, providing important complementary information. A flowchart was established for workflow optimization.

Effect of the Monomer Cross-Linker Ratio on the Separation Selectivity of Monoclonal Antibody Subunits in Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate Capillary Gel Electrophoresis.

With the increasing interest in the biopharmaceutical industry toward novel and innovative protein therapeutics, improved separation techniques are important, especially for the analysis of highly glycosylated candidates. Sodium dodecyl sulfate capillary gel electrophoresis (SDS-CGE) using borate cross-linked dextran is one of the most frequently used methods to analyze biotherapeutic proteins in process control as well as in release and stability testing. In this work, the effect of the monomer (dextran) and cross-linker (borate) ratio was studied in SDS-CGE analysis of a therapeutic monoclonal antibody test item in its reduced and intact forms. A retention model was developed for better understanding of the separation selectivity between the non-glycosylated and glycosylated heavy chain fragments, exploiting the interaction between the dextran-borate adducts and the glycan moiety of the therapeutic antibody. The monomer cross-linker ratio played a significant role in the overall analysis times and affected the separation selectivity between the non-glycosylated and regular (glycosylated) heavy chain fragments; however, it had no effect on the separation of the regular and non-glycosylated intact forms of the monoclonal antibody. Introduction of three-dimensional selectivity plots offered an easy separation optimization option for the separation problem in hand.

The Effect of Temperature in Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate Capillary Gel Electrophoresis of Protein Therapeutics.

The temperature-dependent migration of molecular weight protein size standards and several biotherapeutic proteins were studied in sodium dodecyl sulfate capillary gel electrophoresis (SDS-CGE) in the interval from 15 to 60 °C using borate cross-linked dextran sieving matrix. Arrhenius plots were generated to calculate the respective activation energy values for the various solute molecules. SDS-CGE analysis of the biotherapeutic protein test mixture revealed no correlation between the activation energy requirement of the different species and their molecular weights, emphasizing the importance of separation temperature optimization to obtain high resolution between the solute molecules of interest. In contrast, the molecular weight protein size ladder ranging from 10 to 225 kDa, built from the same polypeptide blocks with no post-translational and other modifications, showed predictable activation energy requirement. The electrophoretic mobility of the SDS-protein complexes was found to be the function of the reciprocal sixth root of the molecular weight (Mw-1/6), implying cylindrical conformation.

Highly Sensitive SDS Capillary Gel Electrophoresis with Sample Stacking Requiring Only Nanograms of Adeno-Associated Virus Capsid Proteins.

Sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) has been the method of choice in the past decades for size-based protein analysis. However, in general it requires the protein concentration in mg/mL level and thus is not practical for trace level protein analysis, not to mention the lengthy labor-intensive procedures. The SDS capillary gel electrophoresis (SDS CGE) method reported herein requires only nanogram-sized proteins loaded onto the autosampler. A sample stacking technique (e.g., head-column field-amplified sample stacking (HC FASS)) was employed, providing three orders of magnitude sensitivity enhancement compared to conventional SDS CGE. This method has been used routinely in purity analysis and characterization of adeno-associated virus (AAV) intermediates and finished gene therapeutics of AAV vectors. The sensitivity achieved is comparable to the currently most sensitive size-based protein assay silver-stained SDS PAGE. The highly sensitive sample stacking SDS CGE can be used for other types of proteins as well.

Quality Control Of FITC-labeled Proteins for Interactomics Investigations Using SDS Capillary Gel Electrophoresis and SPR Biosensor

The technology of dye-labeled proteins has many fields of application, especially in interactomics. The aim of this work was to adapt protocol of conjugation of low molecular weight (12 – 15 kDа) heme-containing proteins with fluorescein isothiocyanate, isomer I, (FITC) for subsequent protein-protein interaction studies. We have monitored the quality of FITC-labeling of the target protein and comparative assessment of its binding capacity. Using the cytochrome C (Mw 12 kDа) as an example, it has been shown that using the three step method approach including conventional spectrophotometry, capillary gel electrophoresis and SPR analysis it is possible to assess: (i) the capability of the FITC-labeled target protein to interact with its protein partner and protein material from tissue lysates, (ii) the fact of dye conjugation with the protein, and (iii) the quality of purification for final protein preparation from unreacted free dye molecules

Identification and characterization of a thermally cleaved fragment of monoclonal antibody-A detected by sodium dodecyl sulfate-capillary gel electrophoresis

This report describes a novel, comprehensive approach to identifying a fragment peak of monoclonal antibody-A (mAb-A), detected by sodium dodecyl sulfate-capillary gel electrophoresis (SDS-cGE). The fragment migrated close to the internal standard (10kDa marker) of SDS-cGE and increased about 0.5% under a 25°C condition for 6 months. Generally, identification of fragments observed in SDS-cGE is challenging to carry out due to the difficulty of collecting analytical amounts of fractionations from the capillary. In this study, in-gel digestion peptide mapping and reversed phase liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (RPLC–MS) were employed to elucidate the structure of the fragment. In addition, a Gelfree 8100 fractionation system was newly introduced to collect the fragment and the fraction was applied to the structural analysis of a mAb for the first time. These three analytical methods showed comparable results, proving that the fragment was a fraction of heavy chain HC1-104. The fragment contained complementarity determining regions (CDRs), which are significant to antigen binding, and thus would affect the efficacy of mAb-A. In addition, SDS-cGE without the 10kDa marker was demonstrated to clarify the increased amount of the fragment, and the experiment revealed that the fragment increases 0.2% per year in storage at 5°C. The combination of the three analytical methodologies successfully identified the impurity peak detected by SDS-cGE, providing information critical to assuring the quality and stability of the biotherapeutics.

Quantification of Whey Protein Content in Infant Formulas by Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate-Capillary Gel Electrophoresis (SDS-CGE): Single-Laboratory Validation, First Action 2016.15.

Protein separation by sodium dodecyl sulfate-capillary gel electrophoresis, followed by UV absorption at 220 nm, allows for the quantification of major proteins in raw milk. In processed dairy samples such as skim milk powder (SMP) and infant formulas, signals from individual proteins are less resolved, but caseins still migrate as one family between two groups of whey proteins. In the first group, α-lactalbumin and β-lactoglobulin migrate as two distinct peaks. Lactosylated adducts show delayed migration times and interfere with peak separation, but both native and modified forms as well as other low-MW whey proteins still elute before the caseins. The second group contains high-MW whey proteins (including bovine serum albumin, lactoferrin, and immunoglobulins) and elutes after the caseins. Caseins and whey proteins can thus be considered two distinct nonoverlapping families whose ratio can be established based on integrated areas without the need for a calibration curve. Because mass-to-area response factors for whey proteins and caseins are different, an area correction factor was determined from experimental measurement using SMP. Method performance assessed on five infant formulas showed RSDs of 0.2-1.2% (within day) and 0.5-1.1% (multiple days), with average recoveries between 97.4 and 106.4% of added whey protein. Forty-three different infant formulas and milk powders were analyzed. Of the 41 samples with manufacturer claims, the measured whey protein content was in close agreement with declared values, falling within 5% of the declared value in 76% of samples and within 10% in 95% of samples.

Quantification of Whey Protein Content in Infant Formulas by Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate-Capillary Gel Electrophoresis (SDS-CGE): Single-Laboratory Validation, First Action 2016.15.

Protein separation by sodium dodecyl sulfate-capillary gel electrophoresis, followed by UV absorption at 220 nm, allows for the quantification of major proteins in raw milk. In processed dairy samples such as skim milk powder (SMP) and infant formulas, signals from individual proteins are less resolved, but caseins still migrate as one family between two groups of whey proteins. In the first group, α-lactalbumin and β-lactoglobulin migrate as two distinct peaks. Lactosylated adducts show delayed migration times and interfere with peak separation, but both native and modified forms as well as other low-MW whey proteins still elute before the caseins. The second group contains high-MW whey proteins (including bovine serum albumin, lactoferrin, and immunoglobulins) and elutes after the caseins. Caseins and whey proteins can thus be considered two distinct nonoverlapping families whose ratio can be established based on integrated areas without the need for a calibration curve. Because mass-to-area response factors for whey proteins and caseins are different, an area correction factor was determined from experimental measurement using SMP. Method performance assessed on five infant formulas showed RSDs of 0.2-1.2% (within day) and 0.5-1.1% (multiple days), with average recoveries between 97.4 and 106.4% of added whey protein. Forty-three different infant formulas and milk powders were analyzed. Of the 41 samples with manufacturer claims, the measured whey protein content was in close agreement with declared values, falling within 5% of the declared value in 76% of samples and within 10% in 95% of samples.

Protein concentration and bentonite requirement in Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc wines

Background and Aims Protein instability has long been a technical issue in white wine production. The aims of this study were: to examine the variability of wine proteins from a single cultivar within a defined wine region over two vintages; and to investigate the correlation of the content of the total and individual proteins and protein haze with the bentonite dosage required for heat stability. Methods and Results Proteins in Sauvignon Blanc juices and wines from five selected Marlborough, New Zealand, vineyards with two pruning/training regimes (two- and four-cane vertical shoot positioned) were studied over two consecutive vintages. Proteins were quantified and characterised by Coomassie Brilliant Blue assay, sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and sodium dodecyl sulfate capillary gel electrophoresis (SDS-CGE). The bentonite requirement for wine protein stability was determined by bentonite fining coupled with a hot/cold test. One vineyard consistently showed the lowest protein concentration and bentonite requirement regardless of pruning treatment and vintage, whereas others varied with pruning treatment and/or vineyard site and/or vintage. Two prevalent juice protein peaks at 22 and 28 kDa in SDS-CGE corresponded to two main wine protein peaks at 22 and 26 kDa, respectively. The 26 kDa fraction was reduced and became heterogeneous after fermentation, while the 22 kDa fraction remained unaffected. There was a good correlation between bentonite requirement and the 26 kDa fraction (R2 = 0.78). Conclusion The depletion of 26 kDa fraction in wine determined by SDS-CGE was a good indicator for protein stability by bentonite fining. Significance of the Study These results suggest that the method of protein quantification may have a strong influence on the utility of protein concentration measurement to predict the bentonite requirement of wine.

A comparative study of LED‐induced fluorescence and laser‐induced fluorescence in SDS‐CGE: Application to the analysis of antibodies

LEDs present an alternative to lasers in LIF detection with CE, resulting in LED-induced fluorescence (LEDIF). LEDs are much less expensive, consume less energy and are more stable. In addition, LED light sources allow a greater range of wavelengths to better match the maximum wavelength for the fluorescence of the dye. Antibodies were largely studied in SDS capillary gel electrophoresis (SDS-CGE) and LIF detection with different dyes to label the proteins. In this work, our goal is to show that LEDs can advantageously replace lasers. We used 5-carboxytetramethylrhodamine succinimidyl ester (5-TAMRA.SE), 3-(2-furoyl)-quinoline-2 carboxaldehyde (FQ), and naphthalene-2,3-dialdehyde (NDA) to label IgG and we compared the LIF sensitivity with that obtained from LEDIF. We measured that the LOD values of LEDIF are identical to that obtained with the wavelength equivalent laser, and for 5-TAMRA.SE analysis, LOD values are about six times better than when the classical 488 nm laser was used.

Application of Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate-Capillary Gel Electrophoresis to the Characterization of Ricin A-Chain Immunotoxins

This study was undertaken to use sodium dodecyl sulfate-capillary gel electrophoresis (SDS-CGE) for the characterization of immunotoxins constructed by cross-linking ricin A-chain (RTA) to monoclonal antibody (MAb). SDS-CGE could separate mono- and di-RTA-conjugated MAbs from unreacted MAb, as identified by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Resolution of RTA-MAb conjugates was improved by decreasing the running voltage from 15 to 5 kV. SDS-CGE was also useful for characterizing aggregates of RTA or deglycosylated RTA (dgRTA) that was formed during immunotoxin preparation. Of the RTA isomers with different carbohydrate contents, RTA1, which has low carbohydrate content, was found to be more susceptible to aggregation than RTA2. In the SDS-CGE of dgRTA, both covalently and non-covalently linked aggregates were observed under reducing and non-reducing conditions. The findings of this study suggest that SDS-CGE can be used to optimize methods of preparing effective immunotoxins and for checking degradants and aggregates.

Characterization of Two Ricin Isoforms by Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate-Capillary Gel Electrophoresis and Capillary Isoelectric Focusing

Sodium dodecyl sulfate-capillary gel electrophoresis (SDS-CGE) and capillary isoelectric focusing (CIEF) were employed to characterize and compare ricin E purified from the small grain seeds of Ricinus communis with ricin D isoform. During the purification of ricin E using ion-exchange and size-exclusion chromatography, SDS-CGE was found to be useful for monitoring the efficiencies of purification steps. SDS-CGE showed that the molecular size of ricin E was not significantly different from that of ricin D, which was confirmed by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry. CIEF was useful for discriminating ricin E from ricin D based on their isoelectric points (pI). The pI values of ricin E and D were 8.6-8.8 and 7.0-7.4, respectively. This study demonstrates the usefulness of SDS-CGE and CIEF for the characterization of ricin toxins.

High‐speed separation of proteins by sodium dodecyl sulfate‐capillary gel electrophoresis with partial translational spontaneous sample injection

In this study, we developed a picoliter-scale partial translational spontaneous injection approach which is suitable for high-speed protein separation under sodium dodecyl sulfate-capillary gel electrophoresis mode. On the basis of this approach, we built a high-speed CE system for protein separation based on a short capillary and slotted-vial array. The system has the advantages of simple structure, ease of building without the requirement of microfabricated devices, convenient operation, and low cost. Under the optimized conditions, picoliter-scale sample plugs (corresponding to ∼65 μm plug length) were obtained, which ensured both the high speed and the high efficiency in protein separation. Five fluorescein isothiocyanate labeled proteins including myoglobin, egg albumin, bovine serum albumin, phosphorylase b, and myosin were separated within 60 s with an effective separation length of 1.5 cm. Theoretical plates per meter ranging from 2.58×10⁵ to 1.28×10⁶ (corresponding to 0.78-3.88 μm plate height) were obtained. The separation speed and separation efficiency of the present system are comparable to those of most microchip-based capillary electrophoresis systems for protein separation. The relative standard deviations of the migration times were in the range of 0.9-1.3% (n=5). Good linear relationships between log relative molecular mass and migration time were obtained in the molecular weigh range of 17,200-500,000, which demonstrate the present system can be applied in protein relative molecular mass determination.