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Why do I need a pyrogen filter?

A pyrogen filter is a specialised filter used in water treatment to remove pyrogens (fever-inducing substances, primarily lipopolysaccharides (LPS) from the cell walls of Gram-negative bacteria) from water. These filters play a particularly important role in the pharmaceutical industry, medical technology and dialysis technology.

Function of a pyrogen filter

A pyrogen filter typically uses ultrafiltration or special adsorption materials to remove pyrogens from the water. Key characteristics:

  • Pore size: less than 0.005 µm (ultrafiltration range) to retain even dissolved pyrogens.
  • Materials: often made of hydrophilic polyethersulphone (PES) membranes or other membrane materials with a high retention rate for endotoxins.
  • Adsorption: some filters also contain materials that bind endotoxins through electrostatic or hydrophobic interactions.

Typical areas of application / industries

1. Pharmaceutical industry

  • Production of injection solutions (WFI – Water for Injection)
  • Cleaning steps in sterile production
  • Part of ultrapure water systems

2. Medical applications

  • Dialysis water: Pyrogens must be removed as they can trigger systemic reactions in di-alysis patients.
  • Parenteral nutrition: Prevention of fever reactions in patients
  • Eye rinses or wound rinses

3. Laboratories and research

  • Production of pyrogen-free water for sensitive cell cultures or molecular biology (e.g. PCR)
  • Use in animal testing to avoid undesirable immune reactions

4. Biotechnology and food industry

  • In sensitive production processes where microbiological purity is crucial
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