부산대학교 도서관

To quantify the carboxyhemoglobin (CO-Hb) concentration of a forensic biospecimen (commonly blood or tissuesample) by headspace gas chromatography (HS-GC), most laboratory protocols entail bubbling carbon monoxide (CO) andnitrogen (N2) gas through the sample to saturate it and then liberate free CO gas. However, despite safety precautions, suchas the use of a fume hood, extended exposure to CO imposes significant safety hazards to analysts. Moreover, analystsworking in poorly equipped laboratories must pay increased attention during CO bubbling to prevent sample overflow. Suchdifficulties slow down the procedure tremendously, particularly when multiple samples must be analyzed simultaneously. In thisstudy, adjustments to the conventional approach were made by introducing a given blood sample into a syringe equipped witha three-way valve, which then withdraws CO gas from an airtight gas sampling bag. After rotating the syringe, free CO inthe blood is removed by moving the plunger up and down a few times and repeating the procedure with nitrogen gas. Theresulting blood sample is then used to prepare a concentration series of CO-Hb blood. The sample preparation time for sixsamples was reduced by approximately 74 %, and no significant differences in CO-Hb levels were observed compared withthe conventional method. This modified approach is expected to facilitate the inexpensive and efficient CO-Hb concentrationdetermination of multitudinous samples for accurate forensic analysis.