MRI: Acquisition of an LC/MSn

从主要研究仪器（MRI）计划，教授拉尔夫N。米德和来自北卡罗来纳州威尔明顿大学的同事帕梅拉·J·西顿将获得一台液相色谱/质谱仪，该仪器具有第n级质谱分析能力（LC/MSn）。该仪器将被用于各种研究项目，包括从自然沃茨中新出现的污染物的破坏产生的光产物的表征，细菌脂质的酰基链表征，化石燃料衍生的有机物的表征，DNA甲基化剂的结合，从猪废物中的微生物抗氧化剂的结构阐明，和短毒素光产物的表征。LC-MS结合了液相色谱的物理分离能力和质谱的质量分析能力。液相色谱仪把混合物分离成分子组分。这些成分流入质谱仪，在那里它们被电离成母离子及其碎片离子，并测量它们的质量。这种高灵敏度的技术可以检测和确定复杂混合物中分子的结构。 具有MSn功能的仪器通过进一步裂解光谱仪中产生的离子提供额外的结构鉴定能力。 该奖项提供的仪器将为几个部门的教师和学生提供使用该机构迄今为止尚未提供的现代仪器进行研究项目的机会。 它还将用于几个实验室课程，以培训大量学生使用这一重要的分析技术。

With this award from the Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) program, Professor Ralph N. Mead and colleague Pamela J. Seaton from the University of North Carolina Wilmington will acquire a liquid chromatograph/mass spectrometer with capabilities for mass spectrometry to the nth degree (LC/MSn). The instrument will be used in a variety of research projects including characterization of photoproducts generated from the destruction of emerging contaminates in natural waters, acyl chain characterization of bacterial lipids, characterization of fossil fuel derived organic matter, binding of DNA methylating agents, structure elucidation of microbial antioxidants from hog waste, and characterization of brevetoxin photoproducts. An LC-MS combines the physical separation capability of liquid chromatography with the mass analysis ability of mass spectrometry. The liquid chromatograph separates a mixture into its molecular components. These components flow into a mass spectrometer where they are ionized into the parent ion and its fragment ions and their masses are measured. This highly sensitive technique allows detection and determination of the structure of molecules in a complex mixture. An instrument with MSn capability provides additional structural identification power through further fragmentation of ions produced in the spectrometer. The instrumentation provided by this award will provide faculty and students in several departments the opportunity to pursue research projects using modern instrumentation not heretofore available at the institution. It will also be used in several laboratory courses to train significant numbers of students in the use of this important analytical technique.