Multielement analysis of biological samples by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry

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Abstract
Interest in the biological behavior of a growing number of ele-ments, along with increasing recognition of the importance of interac-tions among them, demands a versatile and reliable technique for multielement analysis of biological samples. Significant improve-ments over the sensitivity achieved with conventional inductively coupled plasma (ICP) optical emission spectrometries have been real-ized with the introduction of quadrupole mass spectrometry (MS) for detection of ions in the plasma. The hybrid technique of tCP-MS promises to be a method of rapid multielement analysis, at detection limits that approach or surpass those of other technologies. However, the application of ICP-MS to analyses of biological interest is truly in its infancy. Here we report the use of ICP-MS for the determination of more than 30 elements of biological interest in a tissue and a biological fluid (rat liver and serum, respectively). Experimental values of the elements serve as a basis for discussion of analytical protocols, perfor-mance criteria, and certain problems peculiar to ICP-MS.