AOAC SPADA February 2015 Meeting Book

Assay   Synonymous with test or test method, e.g. enzyme  immunoassay, complement fixation test or polymerase chain  reaction tests.  AOAC defines an assay as the total of all of the  steps from sample collection to final result. Analyte Constituent that is of interest in an analytical procedure. Matrix Totality of components of a material system except the  analyte. Ex.: soil, water, air, etc.

Qualitative method Analytical method that results in a binary result: present or  absent.  Frequently, the method has a design cut‐off point at  which the method is designed to be positive at all  concentrations about the cut‐off point.

Q i i h d uant tat ve met o

Analytical method that determines the absolute or relative  abundance (often expressed as a concentration) of one,  several, or all particular substance(s) present in a sample.  [1]