Method Development for Precise Quantification of Amino Acids in Sports D rinks Using HPLC

Amino acids are essential to cellular function. Since they play a very important role in human physiology, the use of amino acids as nutritional and therapeutic supplements is continually being studied by the scientific community. Recently, there has been a rise in the popularity of sports drinks, energy drinks, and water-based amino acid supplements. These drinks contain a variety of amino acids in varying concentrations. A single method that could simultaneously quantify multiple amino acids in simple solutions (such as sports drinks) would prove useful in extending physiological and dietary research of the amino acids used in these formulations. Herein, we demonstrate a chromatographic method for the simultaneous determination and quantification of amino acids in simple solutions. This method requires less derivatization than some current methods used to analyze physiological samples. Furthermore, we expand upon existing methodology allowing for the simultaneous determination of multiple amino acids utilizing the instrumentation currently available in the Natural Science Department of Daemen College