CHROMATOGRAPHY 35
matrix interferences such as phospholipids, which can interfere with the measurement of the analyte subsequently improving signal to noise ratio. Tese methods often save several work-flow hours by eliminating several manual steps
Tis automated technology offers rapid exclusion of large molecules such as proteins as the smaller analyte molecules stick to the nearest surfaces inside the pores of the particles used to pack the TurboFlow columns. Other sample components that don’t stick very much, such as salts and sugars, get rinsed away quite rapidly. Te entire loading step of a typical method takes only 30 seconds. It takes time to wash and equilibrate columns between injections. Multi-channelling is a way to reclaim that time so that the detector is not waiting too long for the next relevant data acquisition event to come by. It basically involves scheduling the autosampler to inject into the available channels of the system in a staggered fashion so that the detector can collect data from each at the appropriate time while the other channels are getting cleaned and equilibrated. Multi- channelling across two channels doubles sample throughput as long as the data window time is less than half of the total run time. Te Prelude MD HPLC
instrument uses syringe pumps that Tomas claims offers several advantages over conventional HPLC pumps. Te system contains a dedicated pump for each solvent bottle. Tere are very few moving parts to wear out. Tere is no routine pump maintenance required by the user. If necessary, a service engineer easily and quickly replaces a pump by swapping modules.
Academic research Meanwhile, in the UK, scientists at the University of Liverpool
and the University of the West of England at Bristol have developed a system, Odoreader, which responds to signature chemicals emitted from urine, much in the same way as dogs detecting certain cancers in humans through their keen sense of smell.
Te device consists of: a chamber for heating the sample (urine) that releases the smell; a chromatography column, which spreads out the compounds responsible for the smell; a sensor, an electric device that has a variable resistance that changes as gas compounds pass over it; and an algorithm that interprets the change in resistance of the sensor to detect patterns linked to disease. Professor Chris Probert
reveals that the inspiration for the device was two-fold, “Firstly our clinical observation that the faeces smell differently in
the presence of disease (so we started to look at that) – secondly, the observations that dogs can respond to the smell of skin cancer (melanoma) and bladder cancer.” Probert was based in Bristol
for 20 years and set up the work with Professor Norman Ratcliffe, then he moved the lab to Liverpool. He reveals that they have recently been awarded funds to conduct a much larger study of bladder cancer to determine whether the results are reproducible. So far the team has achieved 95% accuracy with new data due in two to three years Te team has a five-year plan that will culminate in a product launch for bladder and prostate cancer. Te aim is to create an accurate, affordable device for diagnosing urological cancer and a range of gastrointestinal disease, he says.
www.scientistlive.com
Thermo Fisher Scientific’s Prelude MD HPLC system contains a dedicated pump for each solvent bottle
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84