Hemoglobin variant detection from dried blood specimens by high performance liquid chromatography.

The convenience of dried blood filter paper specimens for genetic screening programs has prompted us to test the stability of these specimens for hemoglobin identification by cation exchange high performance liquid chromatography. This report shows that identification of Hb AA, Hb AF, Hb AS, Hb FAS, Hb AJ, Hb FJ, Hb EF, and Hb SS can be achieved by high performance liquid chromatography even after six weeks of storage at room temperature. Also, accurate hemoglobin quantitation can be obtained from the same samples within three weeks of storage at room temperature. The combination of dried blood samples and high performance liquid chromatography provides an accurate system to screen for hemoglobinopathies, even after long periods of sample storage at ambient conditions.