Center Analytical Laboratory - The PM Center Analytical Laboratory (PMCAL) provides support for the Research Cores of the Center. Its primary focus is the identification and quantification of trace and ultra-trace levels of organic and inorganic chemicals and toxic compounds present in environmental samples.

GC-MS and GC-FID are used to determine high and low molecular weight gas-phase, semi-volatile and particle-phase organic compounds ranging from C-1 to C-29, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), nitro-PAH, organic acids, carbonyls, alkanes, aromatics, alkenes, and steroids. Detailed characterization of organics is carried out using a HP 5973 MSD integrated with an HP 6890 Series capillary column GC, optimized to identify trace and ultra-trace species in complex aerosol matrices.

Trace and ultra-trace metals are determined by ICP-MS. A large number of elements, ranging from Lithium (Li) to Uranium (U), are simultaneously analyzed typically within 1-3 minutes. With the ICP-MS technique, a wide range of elements at levels from ppt to ppm is measured in a single analysis. The instrument performs qualitative, semi quantitative, and quantitative analyses, and computes isotopic ratios as well. Presently, we are using Caltech's HP 4500 Series ICP-MS, but plan to acquire a similar unit within the next several months.

The Low Level Mass Spectrometry Laboratory (LLMSL), under the direction of Edward Ruth, is located in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and has been established to provide identification and quantification of organic compounds at trace levels in environmental, biochemical, and geochemical samples from atmospheric, aquatic and solid media.

The facility is equipped with six GCs including a Finnigan 4000 gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer (GC-MS) with an Incos Data System, a Varian 3500 dual ECD gas chromatograph (GC-ECD), a Varian 3700 FID gas chromatograph and other assorted chromatographic equipment. It also has Varian and Hewlett-Packard HPLC units, Dionex ion chromatography, and atomic absorption with a graphite furnace.

The Department of Environmental Health Sciences (EHS) analytical laboratory also emphasizes gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) for the analysis of organic compounds. This unit also has liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry instrumentation for identification and quantification of the atmospheric concentrations of hazardous and toxic organic compounds.

Primary instruments include a Hewlett-Packard 5890A gas chromatograph with a 5970B mass-selective detector and a Hewlett-Packard HP1090 liquid chromatograph/5988A mass spectrometer. The LC/MS has thermospray and particle beam capability. The gas chromatograph features capillary columns. The ICP and AA units are used routinely for analysis of metals with particular attention to arsenic, chromium, lead, mercury and selenium.

The GC/LC/MS unit also can analyze and quantify heterocyclic aromatic amines such as those produced by high-temperature cooking of foods containing creatinine and amino acids. Investigations that target estrogen and testosterone metabolism and investigate the role of environmental chemicals that are estrogenic can use the facility for quantification of levels in biological samples.

The UCLA Center for Molecular and Medical Sciences Mass Spectrometry is a relatively new facility located on the ground floor of the Molecular Sciences Building on the UCLA campus. The Center is supported by the Departments of Chemistry & Biochemistry (College of Letters and Sciences) and Psychiatry & Biobehavioral Sciences and The Neuropsychiatric Institute (School of Medicine). This unit emphasizes the use of mass-spectrometric analysis of biological macro-molecules with particular attention to protein and nucleic acids. Four specialized mass spectrometers featuring a wide range of detectors and operation modes permit the analysis of biological samples, including protein and nucleic acid adducts, which are biomarkers of exposure and effect.