Background In tandem mass spectrometry, analyte detection is based on collision-induced fragmentation, which is modulated by the collision energy (CE) setting. Variation in CE leads to differential ion yield, and optimization is usually performed empirically as “tuning” during method development. Our aim was to build a method to objectify the impact of collision energy settings on ion yield for individual

Phthalates and bisphenol A interfere with the synthesis, secretion, transport, binding, metabolism, and excretion of endogenous hormones and, for this reason, are classified as endocrine disruptors. We are here presenting an analytical method for the simultaneous detection of six phthalates metabolites and bisphenol A in different biological fluids (urine, serum and follifular fluid) by liquid chromatography

The development of non-invasive screening techniques for early cancer detection is one of the greatest scientific challenges of the 21st century. One promising emerging method is the analysis of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). VOCs are low molecular weight substances generated as final products of cellular metabolism and emitted through a variety of biological matrices, such as breath, blood, saliva

The opioid crisis is linked to an increased misuse of fentanyl as well as fentanyl analogs that originate from the illicit drug market. Much of our current understanding of fentanyl and fentanyl analog use in our communities comes from postmortem toxicology findings. In the clinical settings of addiction medicine and pain management, where the opioid abuse potential is high, the use of fentanyl, as

Introduction Most diseases involve a complex interplay between multiple biological processes at the cellular, tissue, organ, and systemic levels. Clinical tests and biomarkers based on the measurement of a single or few analytes may not be able to capture the complexity of a patient’s disease. Novel approaches for comprehensively assessing biological processes from easily obtained samples could help

Over the past decades, the genome and proteome have been widely explored for biomarker discovery and personalized medicine. However, there is still a large need for improved diagnostics and stratification strategies for a wide range of diseases. Post-translational modification of proteins by glycosylation affects protein structure and function, and glycosylation has been implicated in many prevalent

Introduction Carbapenemase-producing organisms (CPOs) are a growing threat to human health. Among the enzymes conferring antibiotic resistance produced by these organisms, Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC) is considered to be a growing global health threat. Reliable and specific detection of this antibiotic resistance-causing enzyme is critical both for effective therapy and to mitigate further

Adenosine deaminase severe combined immunodeficiency (ADA-SCID) is an autosomal recessive disorder in which a lack of ADA enzyme prevents the maturation of T- and B-cells; early intervention is crucial for restoring immune function in affected neonates. ADA is responsible for purine metabolism and—in its absence—adenosine, deoxyadenosine, and S-adenosylhomocysteine build up and can be detected in the

Background LC–MS/MS allows for many measurands monitoring different mass transitions simultaneously. So far, such alternative mass transitions are usually assessed as “quantifier and qualifier ions” in order to rule out interferences in individual samples. However, quantification can also be based on assessment of alternative mass transitions for both the measurand and its internal standard, with two

Rapid identification of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus could ensure appropriate medical care. A total of 409 Staphylococcus spp. strains were used to develop a reliable MALDI-TOF method for species identification. We tested twelve S. aureus strains to compare three different sample preparation methods and the reproducibility of the methicillin-resistant m/z 2414 ± 2 indicator peak with direct

Selected ion flow tube mass spectrometry, SIFT-MS, is a non-separative method for direct quantitative analyses of volatile compounds, VOCs, in air and humid breath based on chemical ionization. Selected reagent ions, either H3O+, NO+ or O2+ (non-reactive with major components of air), ionize analyte molecules during a defined time in a flow tube by ion-molecule reactions thus producing analyte ions

The accurate measurement of androstenedione in human serum and plasma is required for steroid profiling to assure the appropriate diagnosis and differential diagnosis of hyperandrogenism. In this work, we introduce an isotope dilution liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) candidate reference measurement procedure for the quantification of androstenedione in human serum and plasma

Vitamin D plays a vital role in successful pregnancy outcomes for both the mother and fetus. Vitamin D is bound to vitamin D binding protein (VDBP) in blood and is carried to the liver, kidneys and other target tissues. Accurate measurements of the clinically measured metabolite of vitamin D, 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D], depend on complete removal from the binding protein. It has been found that

Although liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) assays for thyroglobulin (Tg) are resistant to autoantibody (TgAb) interference, recent studies have demonstrated approximately 40% of TgAb-positive individuals with recurrent thyroid cancer have Tg concentrations below the lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) of the LC–MS/MS assays described to date (i.e., <0.5 ng/mL), resulting in

As in drug discovery and development, mass spectrometry has become essential at all stages for establishing the safety and efficacy of botanical dietary supplements. Applications of mass spectrometry to the development of botanical dietary supplements include preclinical studies of the mechanisms of action (e.g., proteomic target identification and validation); identification of active natural products

(R)-2-hydroxyglutarate (R-2-hg) is a metabolite produced under physiologic conditions but also by tumors harboring isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) mutations. Detection is challenging as it must be distinguished from its enantiomer (S)-2-hydroxyglutarate (S-2-hg), which is also produced in the body but can increase under hypoxic conditions. A chiral gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (GC–MS/MS)

Mass spectrometry (MS) is increasingly used in clinical medicine in Japan. In contrast to the successful application of MS in clinical microbiology, the adoption of MS-based assays for routine testing in clinical chemistry is very slow. In order to promote the significant benefits that MS platforms bring to laboratory medicine and patient care, the Japanese Society for Biomedical Mass Spectrometry

Ibuprofen is widely used to reduce fever, pain, and inflammation and in the treatment of patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) in preterm infants. However, to study the impact of pharmacokinetics of ibuprofen on the rate of ductus arteriosus closure in humans, a quantitative method is required. Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) is a highly sensitive, accurate, reliable, fast, and simple

The aim of this study was to develop and validate a LC-MS/MS method to quantitate hydroxytyrosol in urine for clinical studies to monitor compliance of consumption of dietary extra virgin olive oil. Both pre-analytical and analytical issues were examined. The stability of hydroxytyrosol was monitored in both urine and synthetic urine at four different temperatures (room temperature, 4 °C, −20 °C, or

Mass spectral data from multiple samples are suitable for a hypothesis-free development of clinically useful multivariate tests using modern machine learning techniques. However, the transition from discovery to adoption of proteomic tests has proved challenging. Slow adoption of these tests in clinical practice is, in part, related to insufficient understanding of the biological mechanisms underlying

Tandem mass spectrometry (tandem MS) is a powerful technique that directly measures compounds based on their molecular weight. Liquid chromatography triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), a type of tandem MS, has been increasingly adopted by clinical laboratories in recent years. While it is complicated and challenging, it has selectivity and accuracy advantages over more traditional laboratory

Misregulated chromatin remodeling via erroneous histone acetylation has been linked with multiple diseases including many age-associated maladies. Previous studies on histone acetylation have utilized specific histone acetylation antibodies as a primary quantification tool. However, antibodies that target specific histone modifications frequently lack sufficient sensitivity and specificity, making

Transactive response DNA-binding protein 43 kDa (TDP-43) is a highly conserved and widely expressed protein in human tissues that regulates nucleic acid processing. In frontotemporal dementia and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, however, TDP-43 forms insoluble aggregates in central nervous tissues. These pathological deposits of TDP-43 have been primarily studied by ligand binding, namely western blot

In the field of Alzheimer’s disease, there is an urgent need for novel analytical tools to identify disease-specific biomarkers and to evaluate therapeutics. Preclinical trials commonly employ amyloid beta (Aβ) peptide signatures as a read-out. In this paper, we report a simplified and detailed protocol for robust immunoprecipitation of Aβ in brain tissue prior to mass spectrometric detection exemplified

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) tau and phospho-tau are well established biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease. While these measures are conventionally referred to as ‘total tau’ (T-tau) and ‘phospho-tau’ (P-tau), several truncated and modified tau forms exist that may relay additional diagnostic information. We evaluated the diagnostic performance of an endogenous tau peptide in CSF, tau 175–190, in the phosphorylated

Endometriosis is a recurrent and benign gynecological disorder, defined by the ectopic presence of endometrium. About 10% of reproductive-aged women suffer from endometriosis. There are no non-invasive or minimally invasive tests available in clinical practice to accurately diagnose endometriosis today. Here, we present our efforts to determine the diagnostic accuracy of biomarkers in peritoneal fluid

Mass spectrometry in clinical laboratories has traditionally focussed on small molecule analysis making endocrinology applications a natural choice given the numerous diagnostic targets in the steroid family, many of which could be multiplexed. Over time, methods for lower abundance steroids were successfully translated meaning that almost all small molecule targets in clinical endocrinology could

Background Highly accurate and sensitive method to measure testosterone in hypogonadal male, female and children is vital for proper diagnosis of hormone-related conditions and their treatment. Objective To develop an accurate and robust total testosterone ESI-LC-MS/MS quantification method with a simple sample preparation workflow and sufficient sensitivity for serum or plasma samples of all gender

Background Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) of antidepressants is important to ensure compliance and to rule out pharmacokinetic abnormalities. Therefore, reliable methods for quantification are important for clinical laboratories. Most of the currently used mass spectrometry methods use triple quadrupoles as mass analyzers. We aimed to develop a method using high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS)

Clinical lipidomics using mass spectrometry (MS) is important to support discovery of biomarkers for diagnosis and understanding the pathophysiology of diseases. Frequently, lipidomics data from clinical studies have large variations among individuals because the human metabolome/lipidome is strongly influenced by genotype, daily activity, diet and gut flora. This inter-personal variability makes data

Pharmacological treatment of the attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) includes use of the psychostimulant amphetamine. Non-adherence to medication is a well-documented problem in ADHD treatment and a cause of treatment failure. The study evaluated the possibility of using oral fluid for compliance monitoring during treatment with lisdexamphetamine (Elvanse®). UPLC-MS/MS methods for general

The majority of research in the biomedical sciences is carried out with the highest resolution accessible to the scientist, but, in the clinic, cost constraints necessitate the use of low-resolution devices. Here, we compare high- and low-resolution direct mass spectrometry profiling data and propose a simple pre-processing technique that makes high-resolution data suitable for the development of classification

The purpose of this work was to develop and validate an HPLC-MS/MS method suitable for quantifying two important cardiovascular drugs, milrinone and dobutamine, in neonatal and paediatric patients’ blood plasma samples. Sufficiently low LLOQ levels were required to obtain adequate pharmacokinetic data for the evaluation of optimal dosing. Since the specifics of the patient group set some restrictions

Background Among Amish communities of North America, biallelic mutations of ST3GAL5 (c.694C > T) eliminate synthesis of GM3 and its derivative downstream a- and b-series gangliosides. Systemic ganglioside deficiency is associated with infantile onset psychomotor retardation, slow brain growth, intractable epilepsy, deafness, and cortical visual impairment. We developed a robust quantitative assay to

Neonatal dried blood spots (DBS) are routinely utilized in the clinical setting as a diagnostic tool for various genetic disorders and infectious diseases. DBS allow for minimally invasive, small volume blood collection and are stored at room temperature. Neonatal whole blood and serum samples can be important in determining genetic risk factors and predicting infantile disease; however, at the present

Tyrosinemia type 1 is an autosomal recessive aminoacidopathy caused by fumarylacetoacetate hydrolase (FAH) deficiency. Consequently, tyrosine and its metabolites accumulate, resulting in liver and kidney toxicity. Symptoms of the disease usually manifest after three weeks of life and include vomiting, failure to thrive, hepatomegaly, jaundice, bleeding diathesis, rickets and renal tubular dysfunction

Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) is a sensitive label-free technique that can be used to study a wide variety of clinical phenotypes. In this context, MSI offers huge diagnostic potential by supporting decision making in the determination of personalized treatment strategies. However, improvements in throughput and robustness are still needed before

Infliximab is a monoclonal antibody therapy used to treat several chronic immune-mediated diseases, including Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, and rheumatoid arthritis. Infliximab acts by binding to tumor necrosis factor and, thus, inhibiting the inflammatory cascade. While it is a highly effective therapy, a subset of patients on infliximab will develop a loss of response to therapy. In these

Understanding levels of in utero drug exposure is important to properly customize the immediate, as well as ongoing, medical and social management needs of affected newborns. Here, we present the development of a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method for the detection and quantification of 4 cannabinoid analytes in two neonatal matrices. The analytes targeted were Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinal

Background The recently identified alternate, or backdoor, pathway of DHT synthesis provides important novel information on androgen biosynthesis beyond the classical pathway. We report a rapid and versatile liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) method to simultaneously and accurately quantify key steroids in human or mouse serum involved in either the classical or backdoor androgen

Phosphatidylethanol (PEth) is a recently introduced biomarker with high specificity, high sensitivity, and response correlating with alcohol consumption. It has the potential to be a valuable biomarker in population studies on the health effects of alcohol, however its stability in long-term stored blood is not known. We used LC-MS/MS to assess the stability of PEth-16:0/18:1 in blood samples (packed

Thirty-five environmental isolates of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) were analyzed by MALDI-TOF-TOF mass spectrometry, top-down/middle-down proteomics and DNA sequencing. Clinically-relevant Shiga toxin 2 (Stx2) produced by these STEC strains were subtyped based on MS and MS/MS (tandem mass spectrometry) of the intact B-subunit (top-down) and A2 fragment (middle-down) of the A-subunit

Introduction Immunoassays and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry assays are commonly employed in clinical laboratories for measurement of total testosterone in serum. Results obtained from either of these methodologies compare poorly due to differences in calibration and/or inadvertent detection of interfering substances by the immunoassays. Standardization efforts are underway, but recent

Background Thyrotoxicosis attributable exclusively to triiodothyronine (T3) is, by necessity, caused by accidental or intentional ingestion of pharmaceutical preparations. The clinical presentation of T3 overdose appears to differ from classic thyroid storm. Case A 30-year-old female patient presented serially to the emergency department with headache, nausea and vomiting. Neurological work-up was

In routine clinical laboratories, serum creatinine is typically measured on automated analyzers using colorimetric or enzymatic assays, which are both susceptible to interferences that can lead to incorrect measurement. Here, we present a straightforward and rapid LC-MS/MS assay for serum creatinine using methanol extraction, with separation performed using a strong cation exchange column. Results

Reliable creatinine measurements are important to evaluate kidney function and for creatinine correction to reduce biological variability of other urinary analytes. A high-throughput, accurate liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry method for quantitation of human urinary creatinine has been developed and validated. Sample preparation was fully automated including cryovial decapping, sample

Background Parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP) is involved in intracellular calcium regulation, neural cell proliferation and synaptic transmission. To date, no studies have been performed to evaluate the potential of PTHrP concentrations in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) as a biomarker of brain pathophysiology. In this study we evaluated the association between CSF concentrations of PTHrP with

Hundreds of new psychoactive substances (NPS) covering most drugs-of-abuse classes have been introduced to the recreational drug market in recent years. One class of NPS drugs that has become more common recently is “designer” benzodiazepines. Due to a close structural resemblance with prescription benzodiazepines, some of these substances may elicit a positive response (i.e. cross react) in immunoassay

In this study, a one-step method for liquid-liquid extraction has been compared against a two-step procedure for testosterone assays in terms of accuracy, specificity, recovery, lipid removal and baseline noise, using QCs and unknown samples. The difference in accuracy was less than 5% for adult sera, while it was less than 10% for prepubescent sera. To compare specificity, the ion ratio transition

Here, volumetric absorptive microsampling (VAMS), used for the measurement of cardiovascular drugs, is compared against conventional dried blood spot (DBS) card sampling to evaluate adherence to prescribed medication. Volumetric absorptive microsampling (VAMS) is an attractive alternative to plasma sampling for routine drug monitoring and potentially overcomes haematocrit issues associated with quantitative

Melanoma accounts for more than 60% of deaths associated with skin cancer, making its early detection through dermatological screening essential for improved treatment outcomes. Early detection and successful treatment of melanoma can dramatically increase the 5-year survival rate from 14 to 98%. To support such efforts, comprehensive identification of metabolite patterns capable of describing cancer

Drug monitoring of benzodiazepines is often performed in toxicology and pain management settings. During the validation of a laboratory-developed multiplex UPLC-MS/MS assay for quantifying benzodiazepines in human urine, we observed notable instability (greater than 20% nominal) in 7-aminoclonazepam (7AC) during prolonged freezing conditions by performing method comparisons and a conventional analyte

Multiplexed adrenal steroid measurement provides critical diagnostic information for patients with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) as confirmation of newborn screening (NBS) or as initial diagnosis. This study reports the implementation of an adrenal steroid profiling method with a turnaround time (TAT) of less than 24 h using liquid chromatography and tandem-mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). A lab-developed

Background Aldosterone measurement is critical for diagnosis of primary aldosteronism and disorders of the renin-angiotensin system. We developed an LC-MS/MS method for plasma and urinary aldosterone and compared it to our RIA method. We present a reference interval study for a Belgian population. Methods 68 plasma and 23 urine samples were assayed for as part of a method comparison. For the reference

Nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) have been the first class of antiretroviral drugs used against HIV infection. Despite NRTI-free regimens have been eagerly sought over the years in an effort for treatment simplification, NRTIs remain in most antiretroviral combination treatment. There has been generally a limited interest for their therapeutic drug monitoring, arguably because NRTIs

During the reproducibility validation for a time-of-flight (TOF) high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) method set up to detect 61 drugs of abuse commonly encountered in the toxicology laboratory, it was noticed that, a number of compounds were not identified correctly during the between run analysis; the most difficult compounds to identify were norpropoxyphene, morphine, norbuprenorphine, nortriptyline

Background Amyloidosis is a life threatening disease caused by deposition of various types of blood serum proteins in organs and tissues. Knowing the type of protein involved is the basis of a correct diagnosis and personalized medical treatment. While the classical approach uses immunohistochemistry, in recent years, laser micro-dissection, followed by high resolution LC-MS/MS, has been shown to provide

Background New mass spectrometry (MS) techniques analysing exhaled breath have the potential to better define airway diseases. Here, we present our work to profile the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in exhaled breath from patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), using real-time MS, and relate this disease-specific breath profile to functional disease markers. Methods In a matched

Background Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) can be a useful tool in the clinical management of anti-hepatitis C virus (anti-HCV) drugs. Methods for the determination of various types of anti-HCV drugs in biological samples are, therefore, needed for clinical laboratories. Objective In this work, employing the LC–MS/MS approach, we aimed to develop a multiplexed method for identification of the following