LCGC Europe-01-01-2020

Click the title above to open the LCGC Europe January 2020 regular issue, Volume 33, Number 1, in an interactive PDF format.

A simple ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography high resolution tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC−HRMS/MS) method to determine seventeen phytocannabinoids was developed and validated for Cannabis plants, resins and their extracts, and oils. The analysis was challenging because of the complexity of matrices, the large differences in the concentration of phytocannabinoids and their pattern in various cultivars, and the structural similarity of these analytes.

What concentration of aqueous buffer should I use in the mobile phase when developing a re-versed‑phase liquid chromatography (LC) method for the analysis of ionogenic compounds?

I have edited the “GC Connections” column in LCGC for over 32 years. In that time, gas chromatography (GC) has changed from a specialized separations technique to being more routine for standardized methods, while expanding outward to complex multidimensional separations and scaling downward towards miniaturization and portability. In my last “GC Connections” article before stepping away from the role of Editor, I give some perspective on how GC has changed and grown over the years, and where it might go in the future.

Size-exclusion chromatography (SEC) is a mainstay in the biopharmaceutical industry, serving as a gold standard analytical tool for the characterization of therapeutic proteins in development and manufacturing settings. Contemporary SEC separations can be performed using columns packed with sub-2-μm particles, and these platforms offer the highest efficiencies available for the separation of monoclonal antibody monomer species from low- and high-molecular-weight product-related impurities. Compared to other chromatographic modes used to characterize proteins, SEC is unique in that analytes are not retained by the stationary phase. As a result, special care is required to achieve in practice the chromatographic efficiency that is expected in theory. In this article, we describe the fundamental aspects of achieving high performance using sub-2-μm SEC columns. In addition, we discuss trends in the biopharmaceutical industry, including challenges that can be addressed using modern size-exclusion technologies.

The 36th International Symposium on Microscale Separations and Bioanalysis (MSB2020) will take place at the Conference Center Le Grand Large in the city of Saint‑Malo, France, from 5–8 April 2020.

A new technique, ice concentration linked with extractive stirrer (ICECLES), provides highly efficient isolation of trace compounds from aqueous samples. ICECLES combines freeze concentration with stir-bar sorptive extraction into a seamless analytical extraction methodology. This month, we discuss how to perform this relatively simple technique, and discuss its advantages and limitations.

Chicago, Illinois, USA, will host the 71st annual Pittcon conference and exposition. Thousands of separation scientists from across the globe and from a wide spectrum of industries will gather at the McCormick Place convention centre to discuss, investigate, and assess the latest scientific advances in technology and instrumentation.