Role of Computers in Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry:Detection, Identification, and Quantification in Drug Metabolism Research

Abstract

During the last few years, rapid progress in instrumentation and techniques resulted in the commercial availability of interactive data systems with the aim to maximize the productivity of both the combined gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer-computer complex and the operator. Dedicated minicomputers, with continually increasing performance/cost ratios, are becoming the rule rather than the exception for the acquisition and handling of data. The availability of continuous repetitive scanning of mass spectra throughout the entire gas chromatographic run provides a tremendous amount of information which can be recorded, interrogated, and even interpreted in essentially real time. Alternatively, there is the option to be extremely selective and monitor only selected constituents or their fragments, disregarding everything else present. Both techniques, and various combinations, have been used for the identification and quantification of drugs and their metabolites.