Sample Preparation

A research group at Lund University (Lund, Sweden) fused a multifunctional peptide tag to the N-terminal ends of green fluorescent protein, lactate dehydrogenase, and human hemoglobin in preparation for separation via ion-exchange chromatography, immobilized metal-ion affinity chromatography, and hydrophobic interaction chromatography.

Researchers from Waterloo University (Waterloo, Ontario, Canada) developed a fast method for extracting and analyzing volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and disinfection by-products in drinking water.

Chemists from Wuhan University (Wuhan, China) used a headspace sorptive extraction technique based on a coated glass bar to determine volatile organic sulfur compounds in water.

Researchers at the University of Cordoba (Cordoba, Spain) used dynamic liquid-phase microextraction with an ionic liquid as the acceptor phase to extract six nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs from human urine samples.

Researchers from Soochow University (Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China) applied an in-syringe liquid-liquid microextraction technique to prepare a clenbuterol sample for analysis by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).

A research group from the University of Waterloo (Waterloo, Ontario, Canada) has used solid-phase microextraction (SPME) coupled with liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS-MS) to determine the mycotoxin ochratoxin A in human urine.

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (Roorkee, India) prepared chiral dichloro- and monochloro s-triazines by nucleophilic displacement of chlorine atoms in s-triazine chloride and its 6-methoxy derivative with various amino acid amides.

Analysts from the Department of Analytical Chemistry at the University of Cordoba (Cordoba, Spain) used ionic liquid-based, single-drop microextraction followed by gas chromatography with mass spectrometric detection to analyze benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene isomers (BTEX) in water.

Researchers from Dow Chemical Company (Midland, Michigan) used headspace sampling with gas chromatography to analyze the concentration and identity of compounds in the vapor above six ionic liquids at a temperature of 100 ?C.

Chemists from the University of Cordoba (Cordoba, Spain) used a continuous ultrasound-assisted approach to extract nine haloacetic acids from vegetables and conversion to methyl esters for gas chromatography (GC) analysis.

Researchers at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (St-Hyacinthe, Quebec, Canada) and McGill University (Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, Quebec, Canada) used headspace solid-phase microextraction (SPME) in conjunction with gas chromatography?mass spectrometry (GC?MS) to measure flavor compounds in commercial cheddar cheese and enzyme-modified cheddar cheese.

A research group at the University of Oslo (Oslo, Norway) developed a method for electromembrane extraction of eight peptides from an aqueous acidic solution using a thin supported liquid membrane in a porous hollow fiber.

Horizon Technology (Salem, New Hampshire), a manufacturer of automated sample preparation equipment, has announced that it has partnered with the Water Environment Federation and the International Water Association to promote World Water Monitoring Day (WWMD) 2008.

Researchers from the University of Barcelona (Barcelona, Spain) analyzed heterocyclic amines in meat samples using pressurized liquid extraction followed by liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry detection (LC?MS-MS).

Researchers from Fourth Military Medical University (Shanxi, China) have developed a method for separating and determining hydrophobic compounds in Cnidium monnieri, an herbal remedy.

Workers at the University of Waterloo (Waterloo, Ontario, Canada) combined a needle trap device and a dynamic headspace method to sample an aqueous BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and p-xylene) mixture.

A group of researchers from Universita degli Studi di Parma (Parma, Italy) developed sol-gel?synthesized coatings for solid-phase microextraction (SPME) fibers for analyzing trace-level polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in water.

Researchers from the UFZ-Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (Leipzig, Germany) used an accelerated membrane-assisted cleanup technique for the analysis of organic compounds in lipid-rich biological samples.

A research group from Soochow University (Taipei, Taiwan) have used a dispersive liquid?liquid microextraction technique in conjunction with an in-syringe back-extraction method to extract a polar organic compound from an aqueous sample before liquid chromatography (LC) analysis.

Researchers from Fudan University (Shanghai, China) and Nanjing University (Nanjing, China) have proposed the use of polythiophene as a coating for a solid-phase microextraction (SPME) device.

Millipore Inc. (Billerica, Massachusetts), manufacturer of sample preparation products for applications such as gas and liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry, environmental monitoring, food and beverage analysis, and pharmaceutical product analysis, announced a global Sustainability Initiative that outlines the company?s plans to reduce its environmental impacts and carbon footprint by 20% over the next five years.

Gilson, Inc. (Middleton, Wisconsin), has opened the Gilson Service Center of Excellence, designed for pipette repair, calibration, and certification for pipette customers in the U.S.

Spark Holland B.V. (Emmen, The Netherlands), manufacturer of equipment for sample introduction, solid-phase extraction, and other separation technology for high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), mass spectrometry (MS), gas chromatography (GC), and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, has announced a change in management.

Researchers at the Virginia Tech (Blacksburg, Virginia) Department of Chemistry have used supercritical fluid extraction with methanol-modified carbon dioxide to separate polar lipid fractions from crude soybean lecithin.

The current issue (2008.1) of Restek?s e-newsletter, ?The Restek Buzz,? includes an article that summarizes the key advantages of thermal desorption versus solvent extraction in air monitoring applications.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, announced that they have been presented with two 2008 Frost & Sullivan Best Practices awards for Market Leadership and Competitive Strategy Leadership in Informatics.

In the first reported study of skeletal muscles in hibernating creatures by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE), scientists from Korea have attempted to shed some light on the molecular processes behind atrophy prevention.

Scientists in China have devised a GC-ECD procedure that involves bromination of acrylamide to give a derivative that is more easily detected at low levels than acrylamide itself. Their research comes in response to the discovery of acrylamide in many types of cooked food in 2002. This discovery made news due to the link between acrylamide and cancer. From a scientific point of view, the acrylamide discovery ensured the creation of a new generation of research grants, many of which involve mass spectrometry, using GC?MS or LC?MS.

Advion Biosciences Inc. (Ithaca, New York), a developer of microfluidic sampling technology for mass spectrometry (MS) has bought almost all assets of its production supplier, Washburn Manufacturing Technologies Inc. (Trumansburg, New York) for an undisclosed amount.

Agilent Technologies has announced the presentation of the 2008 Manfred Donike Award for scientific excellence in sports doping testing to the German research scientist Ulrich Flenker, of the Institute of biochemistry, German Sport University, Cologne, Germany.