“Sugaring Out”

Abstract

“Sugaring out” is a phase partition method used for protein separation, which involves the addition of high concentrations of water-soluble polymers or sugar to induce protein precipitation. This method takes advantage of the protein's solubility changes in the presence of additives. The principle behind sugaring out is that the high concentration of additives increases the solution's overall osmolality, causing a decrease in the effective solubility of proteins. As a result, proteins aggregate and precipitate out of the solution, forming a separate phase that can be easily separated from the remaining components. Sugaring out has been explored for various applications, particularly in the extraction of high-value biomolecules such as proteins and antibiotics, biomolecule recovery from complex mixtures, and fractionation of protein mixtures.