GLC of Amino Acids: A Survey of Contamination

Analyses of biological substances and geochemical samples, of both terrestrial and extraterrestrial origin, are reported for amino acids at the 1-10 nanogram per gram level achieved by gas-liquid and ion-exchange chromatographic methods. These studies have shown that nanogram quantities of amino acids, present in water extracts of geochemical samples or in other samples of low amino acid concentration, can be successfully determined only if the researcher is well aware of the possible sources of contamination.