Abstract
This paper describes a method for the extraction, separation and determination of amino acids, both free and protein-bound, which are present in tobacco. The introduction of the lyophilization process and the ''cold finger'' technique made it possible to obtain a good purification of extracts which, unlike the previous methods, have been preserved for a long time. The combined use of column chromatography and mass spectrometry enabled all amino acids present to be detected. The analyses carried out on different tobacco varieties showed certain quantitative and qualitative differences in the composition of amino acids and only small quantitative variations in the composition of protein-bound amino acids