Multicomponent analysis of hemoglobin derivatives with reversed-optics spectrophotometer

We describe a method for the simultaneous determination of the five clinically relevant hemoglobin derivatives (Hb, HbO2, HbCO, Hi, SHb) in a blood sample by means of a reversed-optics spectrophotometer (Hewlett-Packard HP8450 A UV/Vis). A built-in computer program is used for multicomponent analysis in an overdetermined system, i.e., a system in which the number of independent equations used exceeds the number of unknowns to be determined. First, the spectra of the five hemoglobin derivatives are measured in a series of different human blood samples. Thereafter, the multicomponent method for the simultaneous determination of the five hemoglobin derivatives is tested by comparison with conventional methods for the separate determination of oxygen saturation, HbCO, Hi, and SHb fractions. The multicomponent (multiwavelength) method is sufficiently reliable, accurate, and easy to justify its use in physiological chemical research as well as its routine application in the clinical chemical laboratory.