Biochemical applications of liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry

The current state-of-the-art liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) is reviewed with particular attention to biomedical applications. The most common LC-MS interface designs are described and compared. These interfaces include transport, direct liquid introduction, thermospray, atmospheric pressure ionization, monodisperse aerosol generation, open-tubular LC and continuous-flow fast atom bombardment. The relative sensitivities of the techniques are compared as much as possible, as well as their tendencies to induce thermal decomposition of the sample. Applications of these various interface types to a variety of biomedically important compound classes, including peptides, nucleotides, steroids, lipids, carbohydrates, xenobiotic metabolites and drugs, are also reviewed.