Thin-layer chromatography, a lab technique for separating mixtures, produces high-resolution separations faster and at lower costs than other methods. But TLC doesn't work well with mass spectrometry, which uses other separation methods such as higher performance liquid chromatography to identify or quantify the chemical components in a sample. Gary Van Berkel, who heads ORNL's Organic and Biological Mass Spectrometry group, and colleagues have teamed with thin-layer chromatography companies Camag and Merck KGaA to develop mass spectrometry techniques that are compatible with TLC. The new approach has enabled successful sampling and mass spectroscopic analysis of larger biological molecules, such as peptides and proteins, and constituents relevant to food safety and pharmaceutical purity. Various aspects of the project also were supported by DOE's Office of Basic Energy Sciences; MDS Sciex; and Battelle and UT-Battelle maturation funding.
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