Preparation and evaluation of packed capillary columns for the separation of nucleic acids by ion-pair reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography

Oligonucleotides and double stranded DNA fragments were separated in 200 microm I.D. capillary columns packed with micropellicular, octadecylated, 2.1 microm poly(styrene-divinylbenzene) particles by ion-pair reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (IP-RP-HPLC). Both the length and the diameter of the connecting capillaries (150 x 0.020 mm I.D.) as well as the detection volume (3 nl) had to be kept to a minimum in order to maintain the high efficiency of this chromatographic separation system with peak widths at half height in the range of a few seconds. Three different types of frits, namely sintered silica particles, sintered octadecylsilica particles, and monolithic poly(styrene-divinylbenzene) (PS-DVB) frits were evaluated with respect to their influence on chromatographic performance. Best performance for the separation of oligonucleotides and long DNA fragments was observed with the PS-DVB frits, whereas the short DNA fragments were optimally resolved in columns terminated by octadecylsilica frits. The maximum loading capacity of 60 x 0.20 mm I.D. columns ranged from 20 fmol (7.7 ng) for a 587 base pair DNA fragment to 500 fmol (2.4 ng) for a 16-mer oligonucleotide. Lower mass- and concentration detection limits in the low femtomol and low nanomol per liter range, respectively, make capillary IP-RP-HPLC with UV absorbance detection highly attractive for the separation and characterization of minute amounts of synthetic oligonucleotides, DNA restriction fragments, and short tandem repeat sequences amplified by polymerase chain reaction.     

The separation of nonapeptides by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography.

The separation properties of five nonapeptides on commercial reversed-phase materials have been investigated and the effects of pH, salt concentration and solvent composition have been studied. With appropriate variation of the pH and salt concentration in the mobile phase, it is possible to resolve all of the peptides investigated and their by-products. Mixtures of water and organic solvents (acetonitrile, dioxan, methanol and n-propanol) have been used. The choice of the organic solvent does not strongly influence the separation pattern. The simplicity, speed and quality of the separations and the favourable detection limits (ca. 30 ng) at 220 nm render this technique suitable to routine quantitative analysis.     

Preparation and separation of metallobacteriochlorophylla by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography

Summary Semi-preparative high-performance liquid chromatography has been used for the preparation of copper(II) bacteriochlorophylla [Cu(II)-BChl-a] and zinc(II) bacteriochlorophylla [Zn(II)-BChl-a]. Both compounds are separated on a reversed-phase Inertsil ODS-2 column using a mobile phase of acetone-methanol (2575, v/v). The fractionated metallobacteriochlorophylls (M-Bchl-a) are identified by fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry. The spectroscopic parameters such as the wavelength of absorption maxima and the molar extinction coefficients are determined using pure M-Bchl-a obtained by preparative HPLC. The HPLC method proposed here has been demonstrated to be useful for the purification and determination of components of M-Bchl-a.     

Separation of basic drugs by high-performance liquid chromatography using dynamically modified silica

Separation of basic drugs by high-performance liquid chromatography is often impeded by peak tailing and poor efficiency due to unwanted interactions between the nitrogenous moiety in the molecules and the surface of the silica-based column material. However, when using the dynamically modified silica approach in reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography most of these drawbacks are eliminated.     

Micropreparative separation of transfer ribonucleic acids by high-performance liquid chromatography

A method was developed for the micropreparative separation of individual species of tRNA using reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography on large pore spherical silica bonded with C3 alkyl chains. Columns were eluted with linear gradients of decreasing sodium chloride and increasing methanol concentrations. The decreasing salt gradient gradually abolished hydrophobic interactions and a significantly higher selectivity was thus obtained when compared with increasing gradients of salts usually employed in reversed-phase separations of tRNA. The acceptance of tRNA fractions was tested by charging them with fifteen different amino acids. Significantly different separations were obtained with tRNA from Escherichia coli and from rat liver. tRNAGlu and tRNATyr from E. coli were obtained in a pure form, all other tRNAs were more or less contaminated by adjoining tRNAs for other amino acids. Rechromatography under suitable isocratic conditions was required to obtain pure tRNA species from rat liver. Isoaccepting tRNAs for several amino acids were separated from rat liver. The method described seems suitable for preliminary fractionations of complex mixtures of tRNA and for a simple purification of isoaccepting species if the presence of tRNAs for other amino acids is not an hindrance.     

Faster analysis by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography

Summary Many analysts are not taking full advantage of the high speed possibilities of modern LC. Some analytical procedures reported in the literature, and many in regular use in control laboratories, could be achieved in less time without loss in precision. Some factors which affect retention times are discussed and the advantages and disadvantages of employing shorter column lengths and finer packing materials in reversed-phase HPLC are examined. The effect on efficiency of increased flow rates with 10,5 and 3 m ODS materials is shown. The ability to couple shorter column lengths without loss of efficiency is also demonstrated. This allows a minimum length to be selected that gives adequate resolution. Examples of high speed separations are shown and limitations in state of the art HPLC equipment and chromatographic data systems are discussed briefly.Presented at the 14th International Symposium on Chromatography London, September, 1982     

Variability of column selectivity for reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography compensation by adjustment of separation conditions

Reversed-phase columns are widely used in assays based on high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). When such assays are repeated over time, it is often necessary to replace the column. In such cases, the selectivity of columns from different production batches may prove sufficiently variable to result in a failed separation. It is possible to compensate for differences in column selectivity by making small changes (adjustments) in separation conditions. The present paper describes an efficient procedure for choosing adjusted conditions and discusses its general applicability.     

Behavior of large nucleic acids in reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography.

Large nucleic acids can be separated by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography. Analysis shows that the retention time depends not only on the chain length but also on the base composition and the secondary structure of the molecule. A model is proposed to interpret their behavior. This model, called "multiple-point interaction theory" is based on the observation that macromolecules are flexible and very large compared to the hydrophobic phase (octadecylsilane) of the column. It explains the behavior of large nucleic acids in terms of an equilibrium of the macromolecule between the two phases through a multiple-point attachment to the chromatographic matrix, the parameters of the equilibrium being both the hydrophobicity of the base and the number of attachment points. This model fits the experimental data and can be applied to all types of flexible macromolecules, especially proteins and nucleic acids, when they are chromatographed on reversed-phase columns. The model is used to explain the separation of nucleic acids of importance in molecular biology.     

Determination of impurities in propranolol hydrochloride by high-performance liquid chromatography on dynamically modified silica

A rapid high-performance liquid chromatographic method has been elaborated for the separation and determination of small amounts of impurities in propranolol hydrochloride. The separation was achieved on a column of bare silica (Zorbax SIL) with methanol-water-0.2 M phosphate buffer pH 8.0 (70:25:5) containing 2.5 mM of cetyltrimethylammonium (CTMA) bromide as the eluent. The concentrations of methanol and CTMA as well as the pH of the phosphate buffer were found greatly to affect the separation. The selectivity of the system towards a mixture of propranolol and three possible impurities was investigated using different brands of silica. Only minor variations were found relative to those of a chromatographic system based on chemically bonded ODS silicas from the same sources. The method is also suitable for identification purposes, being able to separate most beta-blocking drugs of structures similar to that of propranolol.     

Multivariate optimisation of the experimental conditions for determination of three methylxanthines by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography

Caffeine (1,3,7-trimethylxanthine), theobromine (3,7-dimethylxanthine) and theophylline (1,3-dimethylxanthine) are the most important naturally occurring methylxanthines. Caffeine is a constituent of coffee and other beverage and included in many medicines. Theobromine and theophylline are formed as metabolites of caffeine in humans, and are also present in tea, cocoa and chocolate products.

In order to improve the chromatographic resolution (R_s) with a good analysis time, experimental designs were applied for multivariate optimisation of the experimental conditions of an isocratic reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic (RP-HPLC) method used for the simultaneous determination of caffeine, theobromine and theophylline. The optimisation process was carried out in two steps using full three-level factorial designs. The factors optimised were: flow rate and mobile phase composition. Optimal conditions for the separation of the three methylxanthines were obtained using a mixture of water/ethanol/acetic acid (75:24:1%, v/v/v) as mobile phase and a flow rate of 1.0 mL min⁻¹. The RP-HPLC/UV method was validated in terms of limit of detection (LOD), limit of quantitation (LOQ), linearity, recovery and the precision, calculated as relative standard deviation (R.S.D.). In these conditions, the LOD was 0.10 μg L⁻¹ for caffeine, 0.07 μg L⁻¹ for theobromine and 0.06 μg L⁻¹ for theophylline. The proposed method is fast, requires no extraction step or derivatization and was suitable for quantification of these methylxanthines in coffee, tea and human urine samples.     

Column-induced selectivity in separation of polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons by reversed-phase,high-performance liquid chromatography

Summary Differences in retention time and relative elution order were observed when a standard mixture of 11 PAH was injected on three C-18 columns from different manufacturers under equivalent conditions.Working on a grant from the Swedish Natural Science Research Council.     

Determination of organic acids in alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography

A procedure for the quantification of 9 organic acids, acetic, formic, citric, tartaric, lactic, malic, succinic, oxalic, and fumaric, in alcoholic and alcohol-free beverages by reversed-phase HPLC on a Pronto-SIL C18 AQ (300 × 3 mm) column (3 μm) with the mobile phase 5 mM Li₂SO₄ (pH 3.00, H₂SO₄) at the rate 0.5 mL/min and conductometry detection. The analytical ranges made 5–200 mg/L for tartaric, malic, lactic and acetic acids, 2–200 mg/L for the citric and fumaric, 10–400 mg/L for succinic, 15–400 for oxalic, and 20–200 for the formic acids, and so the detection limits: 1 mg/L for tartaric, formic, malic and fumaric, 2 mg/L for lactic, acetic and citric, 5 mg/L for succinic, and 10 mg/L for oxalic acids. The analysis of alcoholic beverages takes 30–40 min, and of non-alcoholic ones, 20–30 min; the standard deviation of the results of analyses does not exceed 5%.     

Separation of pyrimidine derivatives by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography

Chromatographic behavior and separation conditions of pyrimidine derivatives were studied by high-performance liquid chromatography using a reversed-phase column and a multiwave UV detector.