Mass Spectrometry: A Tool for Enhanced Detection of Hemoglobin Variants

are currently known. Common techniques used in Hb analysis are electrophoretic and chromatographic as-says. In our laboratory, we routinely apply chromato-graphic methods. To ascertain whether Hb variants are missed with our procedures, we additionally analyzed all samples with mass spectrometry (MS). Methods: Database evaluation was performed using all entries made in the Hb variant database HbVar, and possible Hb variants were calculated based on DNA variations. During a 5-year period, we analyzed 2105 lysates with cation-exchange HPLC (PolyCAT A col-umn) and reversed-phase HPLC and additionally with electrospray ionization or MALDI-TOF MS. Globin chains were identified by their molecular masses. Results: Database evaluation revealed that 43.2 % of al