We have fecal supernatants to analyze for SCFA production by HPLC. It appears that we may be losing SCFA quantities due to filtering. What filter would you recommend for samples processing?
I recommend using a Teflon filter in polypropylene housing, like the Acrodisc CR PTFE available from Pall Life Sciences.
If it is possible, I will try centrifuge first. It is easy and no issue with binding. There are lots of filters out there e.g. Nylon, PVDF, Teflon (not compatible with 100% water sample), and others. Yet, whatever filter you want to use, you still need to test it experimentally. If you need to use filter and your sample is 100% aqueous, the filter may act like reversed-phase HPLC and absorb your analyte. The fix is to increase organic content in the sample to at least 50%. Check out my publication on my profile, I did an experiment on pesticide mixes. I found that if pesticides are in 100% water, some non-polar pesticide will be absorbed on the filter. To fix this issue, I have to have at least 1:1 water: methanol in the sample before filter it.
- Badges
- Science method