Re: MS Calibration question?

Axel Ducret (axel_ducret@merck.com)
Wed, 10 Nov 1999 10:08:29 -0500

Hi Doug,

Check whether the quadrupole resolution is in line with your calibration. Your
PPG calibrant is singly charged and you are measuring an exact mass whereas the
myoglobin peaks are 10- to 20-charged and you are measuring an average mass. If
the resolution of your quadrupole is not carefully controlled (i.e. if your
quadrupole only achieves 900 resolution instead of a 1000), the mass measurement
will be less accurate for myoglobin (it will drift by a couple of 100 milidalton
at the full mass spectum level, resulting in a drift of a couple of Da when you
deconvolute) while it be still OK for PPG. On my instrument, I always use
separate calibration files for proteins and peptides exactly for that reason.
Mass measurements are then considerably more accurate.

Hope that it helps.

Axel

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Axel Ducret, Ph.D. Senior Research Biologist Merck-Frosst Canada Inc. Dept. Biochemistry and Molecular Biology P.O. Box 1005 Pointe-Claire-Dorval PQ H9R 4P8 Canada

tel. + (514) 428-3428 fax + (514) 428-4900