Silicon oil, a common lubricating material, often lines surfaces of prefilled glass syringes (PFS). Unfortunately, this oil can adversely affect formulations by causing protein loss. It has been hypothesized that the addition of a surfactant can reduce this loss by competing with proteins for interactions with the oil. To investigate this possibility, quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation (QCM-D) and interfacial tension measurements were used to study interactions between abatacept and two surfactants, polysorbate 80 and poloxamer 188.Both polysorbate 80 and poloxamer 188 were observed to reduce the interfacial tension between silicone oil and abatacept in buffer. Adsorption of both polysorbate 80 and abatacept showed smaller frequency shift compared to abatacept alone, which suggests that polysorbate 80 competes with abatacept for binding spots on silicone oil. This study provides insight into the mechanism for soluble protein loss and denaturation and aggregation that may occur during protein therapeutic manufacturing and storage.

Mechanistic understanding of protein-silicone oil interactions

244th National Meeting (2012)

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