October 2003 Meeting
The three hundred and forty fourth meeting of the Section will be held on Wednesday, October 8, 2003 at 8:00 pm at Wilkes University in Wilkes-Barre, PA. The guest speaker, Dr. Catherine Bentzley from The University of the Sciences in Philadelphia, will present a talk entitled "Investigations of the Decomposition, Fermentation and Conformation of Biological Systems using Mass Spectrometry".
Social from 5:30 - 6:00 p.m.
Dinner from 6:00 - 7:30 p.m.
The social and dinner will be held at Pattes Sports Bar & Restaurant. Directions are provided below and dinner will be " from the menu". Please RSVP by 4:30 p.m. Monday, October 6, to Mary Lou Gillespie 570-408-4750 or by e-mail to mencer@wilkes.edu.
The meeting will be at 8:00 p.m. Room 380 of the Stark Learning Center.
Directions to Pattes Sports Bar & Restaurant: (65 W Hollenback Ave in Wilkes Barre, PA) from I-81 North or South, Exit Route 309 North and continue north to Exit 3 (the Plains/Wilkes-Barre/River Street Exit). Make a left at the light at the end of the exit ramp, and follow River Street to Oneil Ave. Turn left onto Oneil and you will see the parking lot on your right. Additional parking is available in Pattes' Hollenback Ave. parking lot. You can get a nice map of the location by entering the address (see above) at http://www.mapquest.com/maps/.
Directions to Wilkes: From I-81 North or South, Exit Route 309 North and continue north to Exit 3 (the Plains/Wilkes-Barre/River Street Exit). Make a left at the light at the end of the exit ramp, and follow River Street to Northampton St. (Wilkes University is on the left side of River St). Parking is available behind the Student Union Building (one long block past Northampton St. on South St.) and in any of the other campus lots. Stark Learning Center is on River St. mid-block between Northampton and South Sts. Detailed directions, maps can be found atwww.wilkes.edu/pages/273.asp.
Investigations of the Decomposition, Fermentation and Conformation of Biological Systems using Mass Spectrometry
The rapid and enormous expansion in the biotechnology revolution has caused increased interest in determining exact molecular weights of biological systems. Mass spectrometry offers a quick and convenient method for determining accurate molecular weights of biological samples including peptides, proteins, oligonucleotide and oligosaccharides. Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization and Electrospray Ionization are the two predominant mass spectrometry techniques used for the development of biological assays.
During the MALDI process singly-charged analyte ions are produced after desorption/ionization from a matrix using a nitrogen laser. For example, in our laboratory we utilize MALDI to track the fermentation process of drug products. In another study MALDI is used to track the decomposition of PCR primers over various periods of time ranging from 1 day to 10 years.
In contrast to MALDI, the ESI method ionizes an analyte to form charged species through desolvation of microscopic droplets. A resultant ESI spectrum contains a multiply protonated envelope of various mass-to-charge ratios. ESI can also be utilized to study the conformational changes of protein structures as they undergo desolvation. It is also possible to analyze the denaturing of oligonucleotide strands as the sample enters the gaseous phase.
Catherine Bentzley is a native Philadelphian who attended St. Joseph's Univesity as an undergraduate- the hawk will never die! After which experience, she continued her graduate studies at the home of the fighting blue hens- Univeristy of Delaware. There she developed a mass spectrometric method for determining the sequence and composition of oligonucleotide strands using enzymatic digestion.
Catherine is currently an associate professoor of chemistry at The Univeristy of the Sciences in Philadelphia, where "Science" is their middle name. She also serve on the Board of Directors of the Philadelphia Section of ACS and as chair of the Delaware Valley Mass Spec Discussion group.
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