Disclaimer
The answers to the frequently asked questions below are meant to serve merely as suggestions offered in good faith and in the hope that it may be of use, but is not guaranteed to be correct, up to date or suitable for your application. NovaMatrix/IFFaccept no liability in respect of this information or its use.
Disclaimer
How can I purchase your products?
Can I order a smaller sample than 10 g of PRONOVA UP?
Can I still order ultra pure chitosan salts (PROTASAN)?
What are your delivery conditions?
What does shipment under CPT Incoterms mean?
My product is stuck in Customs, where do I find airway bill number, TSA-statements etc.?
Can I sell the product to someone else?
How do I store Na-alginate?
Why was the product not shipped under 2-8°C?
What happens to the product over time?
What happens to alginate when it is exposed to higher temperatures?
What is the difference between PRONOVA UP research grade and GMP grade material?
Where can I find the batch specific analytical results?
How do I dissolve Na-alginate powder?
How do I resuspend lyophilized Na-alginate in vials? (e.g. PRONOVA SL and NOVATACH)
My alginate does not dissolve, what should I do?
I am using alginate for cells, what buffer do you recommend?
How can I incorporate cells into alginate?
How do I harvest my cells from an Ca-alginate gel?
What is the difference between an M-rich and a G-rich alginate?
What is the G/M-ratio for the product I have purchased?
What is the molecular weight of my PRONOVA UP?
What is the peptide coupling ratio of NOVATACH?
For NOVATACH, is the peptide covalently bound to the alginate?
How can I purchase your products?
We ask our customers to register on our webpage https://www.novamatrix.biz/registration/ and accept the T&C. When this is in place our customers can place their order directly on the website or send us their purchase order to novamatrix.info@iff.com
Can I order a smaller sample than 10 g of PRONOVA UP?
Our ultrapure products are manufactured and stored under ISO and GMP compliant conditions in our facility in Sandvika, Norway. The quality, analytical and record keeping requirements do not allow us to offer material in less than the 10 g minimum quantity.
Can I still order ultra pure chitosan salts (PROTASAN)?
No. This product is discontinued. NovaMatrix offer a wide range of alginates and hyaluronic acid.
What are your delivery conditions?
Our delivery conditions are CPT place of destination (IncoTerms 2020). Courier charges of USD 75 will be added to the invoice. Payment terms are Net 30 days date of invoice. Please note that duty and VAT are not included. Order lead time is approximately 10 days plus time of shipment. (The product will be delivered directly by Federal Express who will handle import formalities and charge the customer any importation costs or fees.)
What does shipment under CPT Incoterms mean?
CPT means that the seller is responsible for clearing the goods for export and arrange carriage to the named place of destination. The seller does not need to obtain or pay for insurance. Although the seller is responsible for carriage by potentially more than one mode, the risk transfers from the seller to the buyer when the first carrier receives the goods. This means the buyer must carry out all customs formalities for the importation of the goods. Unless otherwise specified, the product will be delivered directly by Federal Express who will handle import formalities and charge the customer any importation costs or fees.
My product is stuck in Customs, where do I find airway bill number, TSA-statements etc.?
At dispatch, all necessary documents for customs purposes are sent to the email provided during order placement. Please search through your emails and follow the given instructions.
Can I sell the product to someone else?
No. Many of our products are used in actual medical devices and applications we need to ensure compliance with IFF medical policy. Our risk management policies require that NovaMatrix sell our products only to the end user (company/university/dept. etc.) and only after the end user has accepted our terms and conditions which also define the use of our products; not in humans at this stage.
How do I store Na-alginate?
In a closed container at 2-8°C
Why was the product not shipped under 2-8°C?
PRONOVA UP alginates labelled 2-8°C are recommended to be stored cold after receipt of the customer. This is NovaMatrix recommendation for in-house storage. However, transportation of maximum length of 3 months at ambient temperature is regarded as safe based on stability studies.
What happens to the product over time?
Viscosity and molecular weight are the stability limiting parameters and they are influenced by temperature. M/G-ratio, bioburden, elements, endotoxins and proteins are stable over time and temperature.
What happens to alginate when it is exposed to higher temperatures?
An alginate solution will have a lower apparent viscosity than described in the CoA at temperatures >20°C. Autoclaving sodium alginate solutions is not recommended, as the high temperature will severely degrade the polymer chain, resulting in lower molecular weight and viscosity.
What is the difference between PRONOVA UP research grade and GMP grade material?
Our products sold as GMP grade are manufactured, tested and stored according to GMP requirements. Research grade products have passed the maximum allowed GMP shelf life of 5 years but are still suitable for research purposes. They come with the most recent CoA.
Where can I find the batch specific analytical results?
All product shipments include the CoA or Analytical Report for the specific batch.
How do I dissolve Na-alginate powder?
Alginates in powder form are dissolved by gradually adding alginate to the water/buffer etc. and allow good mixing. Take into consideration that an alginate gel will develop instantaneously in the presence of divalent cations like Ca2+, Ba2+ or Sr2+ and that sodium alginate precipitates as alginic acid at low pH.
How do I resuspend lyophilized Na-alginate in vials? (e.g. PRONOVA SL and NOVATACH)
Dissolve the alginate in water, media, buffer or an isotone solution by gentle shaking for about 1 hour at room temperature or overnight (refrigerated). High viscosity solutions require longer time and heavier mixing to become completely dissolved.
My alginate does not dissolve, what should I do?
Allowing longer time for agitation/mixing or slightly increasing the temperature may aid in dissolving your product. Keep in mind that high viscosity solutions require longer time to become completely dissolved. A rule of thumb regarding viscosity and concentration, is that a doubling of the concentration results in a tenfold increase in viscosity.
I am using alginate for cells, what buffer do you recommend?
For resuspension, we recommend use of WFI/buffer/cell culture media that you normally use for the specific application/cell type. However, the content of phosphate and other non-gelling ions such as sodium should be kept to a minimum, when you are planning to utilize the gelling properties of alginate. These types of media may weaken an ionically gelled alginate. The presence of divalent cations should be taken into consideration as sodium alginate forms ionically cross-linked gel networks in the presence of divalent cations, such as calcium.
How can I incorporate cells into alginate?
There are several techniques for incorporating cells in alginate gels; see our Application tab for a brief overview https://www.novamatrix.biz/applications/alginate-applications/
First make an alginate stock solution. Resuspend the desired number of cells in the alginate stock solution or dilute the alginate stock solution with culture medium to the desired alginate concentration and resuspend the cell pellet with the desired number of cells. For alginate beads; concentrations of 1,5-2% alginate are common to gel in 50 mM CaCl2. As the alginate solution is viscous, we recommend optimizing both cell density and alginate concentration for your specific cell types.
How do I harvest my cells from an Ca-alginate gel?
When it comes to cell harvesting, we may suggest transferring the gel to an isotonic de-gelling solution/ chelating agent (50 mM trisodium citrate dihydrate and 104 mM sodium chloride is recommended) and incubate at 37°C. Gently agitate or turn the tubes a few times during de-gelling. Finally centrifuge to pellet the cells, remove the supernatant, and resuspend cells in medium.
What is the difference between an M-rich and a G-rich alginate?
Alginate consists of two monomers; β-D-mannuronic acid (M) and α-L-guluronic acid (G). G-rich alginates have a higher binding activity to divalent cations than M-rich alginates, thus promoting gel formation. In general, gel networks formed with low MW degrade faster than gel networks with higher MW, and M-rich gel networks degrade faster than G-rich gel networks. Swelling ratio is also in general higher in M-rich gel networks, which form a softer structure than G-rich gel networks. The specification for our M-rich alginates are M > 50% and G-rich alginates G > 60%
What is the G/M-ratio for the product I have purchased?
The guluronic acid- or mannuronic acid content is provided in the CoA that is shipped together with the product.
What is the molecular weight of my PRONOVA UP?
Molecular weight is not on the standard specification for all products. Please see the table for an estimate based on apparent viscosity.
What is the peptide coupling ratio of NOVATACH?
Please see the Analytical Report or CoA following the product.
For NOVATACH, is the peptide covalently bound to the alginate?
Yes