Best of the Week: Oligonucleotide Analysis, Hydrophilic Interaction Chromatography

This week, LCGC International published a variety of articles on the hottest topics in chromatography and beyond. Below, we’ve highlighted some of the most popular articles, according to our readers. Happy reading!

Latest Trends in Oligonucleotide Analysis: An Interview with Quang-Dong Bui

Patrick Lavery

Quang-Dong Bui is a second year PhD student at Vrije Universiteit Brussels under the supervision of Professor Sebastiaan Eeltink, where he works on the Robust Oligonucleotide Analysis Development (ROAD) project. Oligonucleotides are brief single sequences of synthetic DNA or RNA that act as the foundation for numerous applications in molecular biology and synthetic biology. With hundreds of oligonucleotides in clinical and preclinical development, it’s becoming more important for separation scientists to identify reliable, fast, and accurate methods for analysis. The ROAD project aims to develop new orthogonal separation platforms with high resolution, including multidimensional liquid chromatography, and the introduction of innovative mass spectrometry strategies for the in-depth characterization of the primary and higher order oligonucleotide structures. LCGC International sat down with Bui to discuss his work with the ROAD project and the latest trends in oligonucleotide analysis.

Career Corner: 8 Jobs for Analytical Scientists in Industry and Academia Hiring Right Now

Aaron Acevedo

There are currently more than 80,500 analytical chemists employed in the United States—with more positions opening every day, according to Zippia’s 2024 analytics. In this article, you’ll find a selection of six open roles curated by the editors of LCGC International, for scientists working in pharmaceutical, instrument manufacturing, and more. Have a job you’d want to get the word out about? Send it to Aaron Acevedo, assistant editor of LCGC International at aacevedo@mjhlifesciences.com.

Inside the Laboratory: Grinias Research Lab at Rowan University, Part III – LC Demonstration

Patrick Lavery

Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey, is home to the Grinias Research Lab headed by James Grinias, a professor in the department of Chemistry & Biochemistry. In this third part of our miniseries on the Grinias lab, we interview Samuel Foster of the Grinias lab, who explains the mechanisms behind a liquid chromatography (LC) system and the software used to process LC analysis.

HILIC Retention Time Issues Addressed with New Approach

Aaron Acevedo

Reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC) has become the preferred analytical technique for analyzing organic molecules in fields like pharmaceutical and food analysis. In addition to having excellent resolving power for molecules that differ in lipophilicity, it provides robust and highly repeatable separations. However, highly polar molecules like metabolites, small hydrophilic peptides and oligonucleotides are often not sufficiently retained and separated. This has led to hydrophilic-interaction chromatography (HILIC) being the favored technique for handling hydrophilic analytes. Recently, scientists from the University of Tübingen in Tübingen, Germany tested a new approach to HILIC to address retention time repeatability issues.

Equipment Roundup: New Chromatography and Spectrometry Instruments from Sartorius, Shimadzu

John Chasse

In our equipment roundups, the editors of LCGC International highlight the newest products from instrument manufacturers around the world. This iteration, we look at new products from Sartorious and Shimadzu Scientific Instruments. Do you have a new product that you’d like featured in a future installment of LCGC’s equipment round up? Send a brief summary and photo of the product to John Chasse, managing editor of LCGC International, at jchasse@mjhlifesciences.com.