ence materials, and environmental specimen banking. Wise will serve as the ex officio representative of the Division for 1997. A-page Advisory Panel
Three new members have been appointed to serve three-year terms on Analytical Chemistry's A-page Advisory Panel. The panel meets annually at the Pittsburgh Conference to provide feedback on the A-page editorial content and propose appropriate topics and authors for feature articles. Purnendu K. Dasgupta, professor of chemistry and biochemistry at Texas Tech University, received his B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees from the University of Burdwan (India) and his Ph.D. from Louisiana State University. His research interests include atmospheric chemistry, chemical sensors, ionic analysis, process analysis in the chemical industry, and system automation. Joseph Loo, senior research associate at Parke-Davis Pharmaceuticals, received his B.S. degree from Clarkson University and his Ph.D. from Cornell University. His research interests include using MS to structurally characterize biomolecules, investigate drug-binding events, and study noncovalent biocomplexes. Jeanette M. Van Emon, director of the immunochemistry program at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's National Exposure Research Laboratory, received her B.S. degree from California State UniversityHayward and her Ph.D. from the University of California-Davis. Her research interests include developing tandem immunochemical and instrumental methods for human exposure assessment studies, endocrine disrupters, fate and transport of pesticides, and toxicity of naturally occurring pesticides.
EE2a3iEEES As reported by Mary Warner
A micromechanical living cell biosensor Atomic force microscopy can be used for all sorts of imaging applications, but researchers from The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine have used AFM technology to develop a prototype biosensor that uses living cells to sense and amplify a signal and a micromechanical transducer to report the cell response. Jan H. Hoh explained that different cell types are extraordinarily sensitive to a wide range of hormones, growth factors, and drugs and have the advantage of being inherently sensitive to physiologically relevant concentrations of these substances. The prototype biosensor uses living cells attached directly to a cantilever of the type used in atomic force microscopes to form an integrated cell/cantilever, which is kept in a fluid chamber under a continuous flow of culture media. Movements of the cell/cantilever are monitored using an optical detection scheme in which a laser is reflected off the cantilever onto a photodiode position sensor. Drugs or toxins introduced into the media perturb the physiology of the cells and in some cases cause the cell/cantilever to bend. Although the researchers postulate that this response is probably caused by chemical responses in the cells, they are investigating other mechanisms.
Using chromatography in animal communication research The use of chemicals for biological communication is universal in creatures from bees to dogs to humans. In a symposium honoring Fred Regnier of Purdue University, recipient of the 1996 EAS award for achievement in separation science, Milos Novotny of Indiana University diverged from his usual topics to describe the role of chromatography in mammalian communication research. Although most biological aspects of communications in the house mouse (Mus domesticus) were established by the mid-1960s, said Novotny, the analytical methods for isolating and structurally characterizing the respective pheromones
weren't available until the mid-1970s. Using capillary GC with MS and FT-IR detection, analytical chemists have been able to identify and verify most primer pheromones (specific messengers whose biosynthesis is an inherited trait within a particular species) through their chemical synthesis and biological activities. Signaling pheromones associated with aggression and dominance have also been structurally elucidated. In recent years, said Novotny, researchers have found that genes in mammalian systems code for specific membrane-bound olfactory receptor proteins, and they are focusing on the role of specific proteins involved in controlled release of pheromones and the transport of these chemosignals to their receptors in the olfactory tissue and vomeronasal organ. CE/MS and LC/MS are important tools in this area of research.
Profiling combinatorial synthesis products Combinatorial synthesis has become an important new way for pharmaceutical companies to identify new lead drug candidates. Mark E. Hail of Bristol-Myers Squibb described how he and his colleagues are using LC/MS to generate high-throughput molecular weight information in support of combinatorial drug discovery efforts. At Bristol-Myers Squibb, automated and/or combinatorial synthesis methods are projected to increase the number of final compounds synthesized (not including intermediates) from —10,000 per year to more than 100,000 per year by 1997, said Hail, necessitating the development of high-throughput LC/MS methods. One method, which provides molecular weight information on the five most intense UV peaks, is used to troubleshoot automated synthesis reaction schemes. LC/MS methods are also being used to provide combinatorial stability profiles for the rapid screening of drug candidates.
Technical Paper Prize Recipients Best Poster Paper in Atomic Spectroscopy— Sponsored by GBC Scientific Equipment "The Analysis of Archaeological Ceramics via ICPMS", D. M. Ciurczak and W. B. Walters, University of Maryland;
Analytical Chemistry News & Features, January 1, 1997 19 A
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News K. Y. Patterson, USDA; M. J. Blackman, NEWS FROM T H E ASMS Smithsonian Institution; and E. S. Beary, FALL WORKSHOP NIST Best Poster Paper in GC— As reported by Alan Newman Sponsored by J&W Scientific "Determination of Ethanol, Water, and Time to revise Propylene Glycol in Flavoring Substances by Packed Column GC", L. W. Chapman EPA's MDL? and L. E. Stewart, Bureau of Alcohol, ToEnvironmental statisticians may complain bacco, and Firearms about it, but the U.S. EPA's approach for Best Poster Paper in HPLC— determining a method detection limit (MDL) has been in place since 1984. At an Sponsored by Mac-Mod Analytical "Selecting the Best HPLC Column for American Society of Mass Spectrometry workshop in November, two other apLC/MS Applications", M. J. Joseph, proaches were proposed. However, M. A. Stadalius, and J. Vasta-Russell, warned William Budde of EPA's National Mac-Mod Analytical; and S. Fountain, Exposure Research Laboratory in CincinMicromass nati, OH, any new method would have to Best Poster Paper in MS— meet certain requirements, including easy Sponsored by Scientific Instrument Services implementation. "Computer Modeling of Ion Optics in Time-of-Flight MS Using Simion 3D", EPA's MDL came into existence in S. M. Colby and J. J. Manura, Scientific 1979 as a reaction to proposed GC/MS Instrument Services methods for 113 analytes in wastewater, all with a listed detection limit of 10 pg/L. Best Poster Paper in Near-IR— Public comments attacked the fixed detecSponsored by LT Industries "A Comparison of PCA and PLS Scores tion limits and, two years later, EPA profrom Near-IR Spectra for Selection of Sam- posed a statistical definition of the MDL based on the student's t test and the stanples for Calibration of Total Dietary Fiber dard deviation. in Cereal Products", W. R. Windham, USDA; M. O. Westerhaus, The PennsylvaAccording to Budde, the MDL apnia State University; and S. E. Kays and proach, although not perfect, was simple, F. E. Barton, II, USDA easy to measure, had some scientific rationale, recognized matrix differences, acBest Poster Paper in NMR— counts for the entire method, and is a meaSponsored by Wilmad Glass Company sured value that can vary from lab to lab. and the 1996 EAS "NMR Structural Studies of the HIVOn the other hand, according to David 1(MN) gpl20 V3 Loop Peptide Displayed Lewis of Radian International, EPA's foron the Major Coat Protein of Filamentous mula suffers from several flaws, such as Bacteriophage fd", S. J. Opella, University making certain assumptions (e.g., zero of Pennsylvania; R. N. Perham, University bias), providing only a single snapshot in of Cambridge; W. M. Tan, University of time of how well the method is working, Pennsylvania; and T D. Terry, University and failing to deal with false negatives. of Cambridge Lewis proposed an approach based on the probability of detection. Using data from Best Oral Paper in Near-IR numerous samples, he plots the probabilSpectroscopy — Sponsored by Brimity of detection versus spike concentration rose Corporation of America and obtains a curve that gives an empiri"Analysis of Silicones Using a HighPerformance Portable NIR Spectrometer", cal estimate of the probability of detecting D. Goldman, Optical Solutions; and N. W. an analyte. Lewis claims that his approach addresses Vcirititions over time and is Lytle, Dow Corning based on numerous criteria However as Best Oral Paper in NMR— he admits it is an "analytically intensive Sponsored by Isotec aooroach"' requiring lots of samples "Generating and Exploiting Intermolecular Cross-Peaks in Solution NMR", Another approach is founded on what W. S. Warren, Princeton University developer Robert Gibbons of the UniverBest Oral Paper in Process sity of Illinois at Chicago called a "middle Analysis— Sponsored by Perstorp Anaground" among the various methods. The lytical/NIRSystems alternate minimum-level approach produced plots of measured concentration "A Novel Sampling Device for Obtainversus true concentration and standard ing Process Near-IR of High-Pressure deviation versus concentration. Software Gases", C. W. Brown and A. Mangal, Unirunning this approach is now available. versity of Rhode Island
