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ARS Home » Plains Area » Las Cruces, New Mexico » Range Management Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #143481
Title: RAPID PROFILING OF SHRUB VOLATILES USING SOLID-PHASE MICROEXTRACTION (SPME) AND GAS CHROMATOGRAPHY WITH MASS SPECTROSCOPY (GC-MS)

Author
item Lucero, Mary
item Estell, Richard - Rick
item WANG, YUAN-FENG - NEW MEXICO STATE UNIV

Submitted to: Wildland Shrub Symposium Abstracts
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/27/2002
Publication Date: 8/12/2002
Citation: LUCERO, M.E., ESTELL, R.E., WANG, Y. RAPID PROFILING OF SHRUB VOLATILES USING SOLID-PHASE MICROEXTRACTION (SPME) AND GAS CHROMATOGRAPHY WITH MASS SPECTROSCOPY (GC-MS). 12TH ANNUAL WILDLAND SHRUB SYMPOSIUM. 2002. ABSTRACT P. 27.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Shrub volatiles play a significant role in the chemical ecology of desert rangelands. Activities attributed to these compounds include pollinator attraction, herbivore repulsion, allelopathy, pathogen inhibition, and microclimate modification. Since the mid 1980¿s, advances in laboratory instrumentation and computer software have dramatically reduced the capital and labor costs of sample processing and chemical analyses, expanding the capabilities of small laboratories. Mass spectral databases now include many natural products, and commercialization of Solid Phase Microextraction (SPME) by Supelco Corporation has made routine preparation of thousands of samples feasible for one technician. Here we describe ways we are using SPME, gas chromatography (GC-FID), GC-MS, and mass spectral libraries to rapidly profile, identify, and quantify individual volatiles released by shrubs. Completed profiles include volatile compositions of Ceratoides, Flourensia, Psorothamnus, Dalea, and Gutierrezia, with additional species currently under examination. These profiles can all be obtained by field sampling less than a gram of plant material. The low biomass requirement for sample preparation enables tissue specific sampling with many replicates. Samples are currently cooled under dry ice and transported to the laboratory for SPME followed by GC-MS and GC-FID analyses. Optimization of methods for on-site SPME and gas chromatography is currently underway and will be useful for routine monitoring of shrub volatiles.