Microfluidics in amino acid analysis

Microfluidic devices have been widely used to derivatize, separate, and detect amino acids employing many different strategies. Virtually zero-dead volume interconnections and fast mass transfer in small volume microchannels enable dramatic increases in on-chip derivatization reaction speed, while only minute amounts of sample and reagent are needed. Due to short channel path, fast subsecond separations can be carried out. With sophisticated miniaturized detectors, the whole analytical process can be integrated on one platform. This article reviews developments of lab-on-chip technology in amino acid analysis, it shows important design features such as sample preconcentration, precolumn and post-column amino acid derivatization, and unlabeled and labeled amino acid detection with focus on advanced designs. The review also describes important biomedical and space exploration applications of amino acid analysis on microfluidic devices.