ARC Sciences Ltd offers Pickering Laboratories Pinnacle Post Column reactions systems, which are a complete solution to Amino Acid Analysis. We supply columns, eluants, reagents and post-column derivatisation instruments that work seamlessly with virtually any modern HPLC so we can guarantee the accuracy and reproducibility of the analysis. Pickering chemists will help choose the method and instrumentation best suited to your requirements, work with you on any custom method optimization and offer continuous support in day-to-day operation.
HPLC analysis with post-column derivatisation has been and continues to be the method of choice for detecting amino acids in biological matrices, food products and pharmaceuticals. It offers sensitive and reliable results that have been trusted by chemists for over 50 years.
No other technique, including pre-column derivatisation followed by reversed-phase chromatography, has been shown to match post-column ion-exchange methods in accuracy and reproducibility. This is because the retention mechanism in ion-exchange provides for chromatography that is almost completely matrix-insensitive. Simple sample preparation for native samples is an added benefit of the ion-exchange method. Conversely with pre-column derivatisation, the prepared sample is subject to a chemical reaction that takes place in a very complex medium: the residual matrix. Matrix complexity produces both competition and inhibition in chemical synthesis, resulting in decreased reproducibility in peak area and retention times. Very often the method must be optimized for each different sample matrix. In contrast, ion-exchange chromatography followed by post-column derivatisation is intrinsically more rugged and repeatable since the matrix components do not retain on the cation-exchange column and have no influence on the separation or derivatisation of amino acids. The same method can be used for a variety of samples, from plant extract to serum or spinal fluid. For more information email enquiries@arcsciences.com