Patricia Atkins is a Senior Applications Scientist with SPEX CertiPrep and a member of both the AOAC and ASTM committees for cannabis.

Patricia Atkins

Articles

In the latest installment of this series, Atkins examines techniques utilized for testing microbiological pathogens, along with the role and mechanisms of cell culture techniques including its strong points and limitations for testing cannabis products.

Measuring Microbiology, Part III: Techniques for Testing for Microbiological Pathogens

A look at the advocacy and guidance conducted by the ACIL within the cannabis industry.

Advocacy for the Harmonization of Cannabis Industry Regulation:  Role and Guidance from the American Council of Independent Laboratories (ACIL) in Cannabis Policy

A look at why understanding the conditions in which microorganisms thrive, grow, and multiply is important in both controlling microbial growth and optimizing for microbial testing.

Measuring Microbiology, Part II:  Understanding the Conditions of Microbiological Growth and Viability

In part I of this series, we start the discussion on the important microbiological targets for the cannabis market and understand their significance as a threat to health and safety.

Measuring Microbiology, Part I: A Look at the Microbiological Contaminants in Cannabis

In this installment, we finish our discussion of energy and elements used in atomic spectroscopy by examining an important analytical technique: inductively coupled plasma-mass spectroscopy (ICP-MS).

Energy and Elements, Part III: Understanding and Choosing an ICP-MS

Here we continue the discussion of energy and elements used in atomic spectroscopy by looking at one of the most commonly used analytical techniques in the elemental analytical laboratory—inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES).

Energy and Elements, Part II: A Closer Look at ICP

In this column, we attempt to explore in depth the theory and methodology of our common laboratory techniques and show how an understanding of interworking of those techniques allow for more flexibility in analysis.


Energy and Elements, Part I: Understanding Atomic Spectroscopy

Let’s investigate the differences between the commercially available detector in terms of sample type, size, and selectivity to understand which detectors fit into the most common types of cannabis GC analyses.

Looking with Light: Understanding Gas Chromatography, Part IV: Detectors

Let’s try to understand the functioning and chemistry of GC columns and how to change and manipulate the resolution equation and column chemistry to maximize our own analyses.

Looking with Light: Understanding Gas Chromatography, Part III: Columns and Resolution

Understand the function and chemistry of GC systems and how to adapt that function and methodology to our own analyses.