Retention mechanism of peptides on a stationary phase embedded with a quaternary ammonium group: A liquid chromatography study

We investigated the mechanisms involved in the retention of various peptides on a stationary phase embedded with a quaternary ammonium group (BS C23), by high-performance liquid chromatography. This was compared with peptide retention on a conventional reversed-phase C18 (RP C18) column under isocratic conditions, to understand better the various mechanisms involved. Chromatographic characterization of the two stationary phases with “model” compounds showed that BS C23 is less hydrophobic than RP C18 and induces electrostatic interaction (attraction or repulsion) with ionized compounds. If reversed-phase partitioning was the predominant retention phenomenon, for both stationary phases, the retention mechanisms in BS C23 provided different selectivity to that of RP C18. Electrostatic attraction or repulsion was clearly observed between peptides and the permanent positively charged group embedded in BS C23 depending on the pH. For most of the peptides, a weak anion-exchange mechanism was observed on the quaternary ammonium-embedded stationary phase if mobile phases at neutral pH and low ionic strengths were employed.