Starch Block Electrophoresis of Ragweed Pollen Antigens

Abstract

It has been shown that a complex mixture of antigens occurring in dialyzed aqueous extract of ragweed pollen can be separated by starch block electrophoresis to yield one apparently isolated antigenic component and simplified groupings of antigenic components. This separation is evidently possible owing to differences in net electrical charge among the components or among charged complexes that they might form. Separated material was found to repeat its migration when subjected to a second electrophoresis under unchanged conditions. Further purification of components should be possible by repeated rerunning of selected material. The practical application of the serologic technique of double diffusion as a method of piloting separation has been shown.