Papain-Separopore® 4B can be used as substitute of free papain in many applications. Papain is a cysteine protease that cleaves peptide bonds of basic amino acids, leucine or glycine. It also hydrolyzes esters and amides. This matrix is used to produce Fab fragment of IgG antibodies. It is also used for cell dissociation since it has been shown to be more effective and less damaging with certain tissues. The advantages of using this Papain-Separopore® 4B matrix is that it virtually eliminates autolysis, eliminates contamination of a sample with the protease and allows control of the digestion by removing the papain or controlling the flow of sample over an immobilized papain column. Papain-Separopore® is also more stable against heat-induced denaturation, resulting in longer maintenance of activity.