Advantages / Uses

 Serum Albumin is the most abundant protein found in human blood plasma where it plays a vital role in the maintenance of osmotic blood pressure and blood pH.  Albumin also plays an essential role in the transport, distribution and metabolism of a broad array of ligands including many of the most important pharmaceuticals on the market today. It is in effect, Mother Nature's drug delivery system.  Drug affinity and binding location to albumin can significantly alter the half-life, distribution and metabolism of drugs, thereby playing a major role in the ADME (absorption, distribution, metabolism and secretion) of many important pharmaceuticals.

Because of albumin's abundance, purity, and special properties, like chemical binding and stabilzing affects, it has been used successfully and to advantage in numerous applications.

Some common applications:

 

• Blood volume expander (primarily non-recombinant).  The principal pharmaceutical application of albumin which represents a multi-billion dollar industry from pooled outdated human blood.

 

• Biologics: therapeutic adducts/formulation for improved circulation half-life

 

• Biologics: Excipient formulaton for bio-therapeutics and vaccines

 

• Cell Culture: Primary cell expansion; Improved CHO cell culture results in pharmaceutical antibody production.

 

• Medical devices: Invitro fertilization; medical device coatings

 

• Biomaterials development

 

• Cryopreservation

 

• Structural and solution studies of drug binding interactions for pharmaceutical research and development

 

• More recently, Albagen Skin Care has been pioneering the use of recombinant albumin in skin care.