Chromatographic approaches to signal and selectivity enhancement for determination of biogenic amines by liquid chromatography with amperometric detection.

A variety of chromatographic approaches are detailed for enhancement of signal and selectivity for determination of biogenic amines by HPLC with amperometric detection. Microbore HPLC columns offer significant signal enhancement due to the reduced elution volume. Selection of novel surfactants such as N-methyl oleoyl taurate allows conversion of reverse phase materials to strong cation exchangers, adding selectivity. Large injection volumes can be applied to these columns due to their strong cationic nature using a noneluting matrix. Additional sensitivity can be obtained by using a mobile phase of relatively high pH to take advantage of intramolecular cyclization.