Liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection in the analysis of biological fluids

Liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection is well suited to the ana lysis of biological fluids, as it combines both selectivity and sensitivity . The determinations are not limited to fluorescent compounds, as non-fluor escent substances can be converted to fluorescent derivatives by appropriat e reactions. As a consequence of progress in methodology and of the develop ment of new reagents, a great number of biological substances and drugs can now be successfully analyzed by this technique. Reliable automated procedu res using pre-column derivatization are available, in particular for the an alysis of amino acids and amines. In addition, systems using short columns, reduced particle size of the stationary phase and ultramicro detector cell s represent a promising approach to the analysis of very small volumes of s ample.