| This thesis presents the method of coupling microdialysis sampling to micellar electrokinetic chromatography with laser-induced fluorescence detection (MEKC-LIF) to monitor amino acids in vivo in rat brain.; The separation of amino acids in rat brain homogenate supernatants and microdialysates was improved by adding β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) to the buffer system. Rhodamine 6G was carefully selected as an internal standard to improve the precision dramatically.; The reaction rate and activation energy were investigated for five amino acids with the fluorogenic reagent 3-(2-furoyl)quinoline-2-carboxaldehyde (FQ) in artificial cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Detection limits for the labeled neurotransmitters were 0.6 − 9.5 pg/5μL, which correspond to 300 zeptomoles and 7 attomoles injected onto the capillary.; Finally, five amino acids in rat brain were continuously monitored by the combination of microdialysis sampling and β-CD aided MEKC-LIF. The administration of the antidepressant/antipanic drug phenelzine (PLZ) increased the extracellular levels of GABA and alanine, and decreased the glutamine concentration by 3-fold. Glutamic acid and taurine were not affected by PLZ. |
