High performance capillary electrophoresis - T.E.A.M.

CE is characterized by imaginative research into new
separation mechanisms and new detection principles. In
fact, the lowest detection limits attained in the whole field
of separations are for CE with laser induced fluorescence
detection, where researchers are on the verge of single
molecule detection. The prospects of extraordinary separation
power, speed of analysis, and extreme sensitivity are
driving intensive research on CE by many of the best
analytical research laboratories around the world.
The future of CE is difficult to anticipate. As the number
of practitioners continues to grow, our knowledge base will
increase, as will our level of comfort in knowing its
strengths as well as its limitations. We will have many
“recipes” at our fingertips for successful approaches to
problems. None-the-less, the field will be exciting for many
years to come. CE is likely to be a principal tool in DNA
sequencing, and due to its great speed, may well play a
crucial role in sequencing the human genome. The successes
achieved so far in interfacing CE with mass spectrometers
promise remarkable capabilities for unraveling
the structures of complex macromolecules with unsurpassed
speed, accuracy, and sensitivity. CE-MS may offer us
the possibility of sequencing proteins in a matter of days.
As new detection methods and reagents are refined, CE will
revolutionize our knowledge of substances such
as carbohydrate polymers, where methodology has long
hindered our understanding of the role of an important
class of molecules. And we should not forget the extremely
small sample requirement of CE, which makes it attractive
as a tool for exploring the chemistry of small places, a
prime example of which is the single cell. There is one thing
that I am certain about; CE will provide us with many
exciting surprises in the years ahead.
James W. Jorgenson
Chapel Hill, NC, USA
November 25, 1992
Foreword
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