Electromembrane extraction of peptides

Rapid extraction of eight different peptides using electromembrane extraction (EME) was demonstrated for the first time. During an extraction time of 5 min, the model peptides migrated from a 500 μL aqueous acidic sample solution, through a thin supported liquid membrane (SLM) of an organic liquid sustained in the pores in the wall of a porous hollow fiber, and into a 25 μL aqueous acidic acceptor solution present inside the lumen of the hollow fiber. The driving force of the extraction was a 50 V potential sustained across the SLM, with the positive electrode in the sample and the negative electrode in the acceptor solution. The nature and the composition of the SLM were highly important for the EME process, and a mixture of 1-octanol and 15% di(2-ethylhexyl) phosphate was found to work properly. Using 1 mM HCl as background electrolyte in the sample and 100 mM HCl in the acceptor solution, and agitation at 1050 rpm, enrichment up to 11 times was achieved. Recoveries were found to be dependent on the structure of the peptide, indicating that the polarity and the number of ionized groups were important parameters affecting the extraction efficiency. The experimental findings suggested that electromembrane extraction of peptides is possible and may be a valuable tool for future extraction of peptides.