John Chasse

A study investigating the presence of melamine contamination in commercial citrus juices conducted quantification of melamine concentrations in triplicate utilizing a high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) system.

Elham Akbari has been named the recipient of Metrohm USA’s 2025 Young Chemist Award for her work with thermal degradation, as a promising solution for breaking per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), often referred to as "forever chemicals," into less harmful substances. LCGC International spoke to Akbari about her work prior to her presenting her award-winning research at this week’s Pittcon 2025 meeting.

Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), electronic tongue (E-tongue), electronic nose (E-nose), and sensory analysis were used to investigate the flavor profiles of beef jerky from four specific regions of China: Xinjiang, Tibet, Sichuan, and Inner Mongolia.

Researchers investigated the protective effects of enzymatically digested velvet antler (VA) extract on the mitochondria in astrocytes, which are essential organelles regulating oxidative stress. Proteomic and metabolomic results using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) identified enriched bioactive ingredients which display significant protective effects against mitochondrial stressors in astrocytes compared with other health functional ingredients.

Aroma compounds of glutinous rice chicken (GRC) were investigated and compared using headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), electronic nose, and electronic tongue methods. Based on the results, the researchers believe that theoretical guidance can be established for the achievement of standardized, large-scale, and industrialized production of GRC products.

The biodegradability of poly(butylene succinate) (PBSu) in marine environments is under scrutiny. As it is well known that the biodegradability of biodegradable polymers depends on their molecular weight, researchers explored the effect of that factor of PBSu on its biodegradability through biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) testing in seawater, with samples of differing molecular weight prepared with size-exclusion chromatography (SEC).

Exploring the alterations in metabolites of wet age-related macular degeneration (wAMD), metabolomic analysis was performed on the aqueous humor of 30 patients with wAMD receiving anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) treatments and 20 controls, via ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS).

Researchers at Jilin University (Changchun, China) developed a highly sensitive, rapid, and accurate method for analyzing neurotransmitters (NTs) in rat spinal cord tissue. Ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-QqQ-MS/MS) in conjunction with ultra-ionic liquid dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (UA-MIL-DLLME) were used to extract NTs for analysis.

A joint study between the Institute for Environment and Energy, Technology and Analytics (IUTA e. V., Duisburg, Germany) and Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (Germany) explored the combination of size exclusion chromatography (SEC) with diode array detector (DAD) and capillary-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (CERS) to directly analyze hemolyzed serum samples. We spoke to Jana Thissen, first author of the paper resulting from this study, about her team’s work.

High-speed counter current chromatography (HSCCC), an advanced liquid-liquid chromatography technique employing both a liquid stationary phase and a liquid mobile phase (effectively eliminating irreversible adsorption), was used to harvest allicin from garlic.

A pyrolysis gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) methodology has been specifically developed for the identification and quantification of seven polymers commonly found in tap water. The researchers responsible for the approach state that it prioritizes both time and cost efficiency without compromising the thoroughness of marker spectrum detection and confirmation.

LCGC International is celebrating the National Day of Women and Girls in Science by highlighting the work of women in analytical chemistry.

Research conducted by The Technology Transfer Center of the Edmund Mach Foundation (San Michele all'Adige, Italy) and the University of Udine (Udine, Italy) used liquid chromatography coupled with high-resolution mass spectrometry (LC-MS) to investigate alkaloid transfer from alpine pastures to milk.

A study by the United Arab Emirates University aimed to develop and validate a sensitive method for the determination of six key phytohormones in aloe vera using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS).

A study aiming to identify fluorescent bioactive compounds in the coelomic fluid of earthworms, as well as to investigate their structural and functional characteristics for possible use in biomedical applications, utilized a variety of chromatographic techniques.

Gel permeation chromatography, three-dimensional excitation-emission matrix fluorescence spectroscopy, and UV-visible spectroscopy was utilized to assess road runoff passed through a filter filled with sludge from drinking water treatment plants to evaluate its capacity for removing dissolved organic matter (DOM).

A recent study described develops methods for synthesizing and quantifying metal-induced glycation products, particularly in French fries, with phytic acid as a natural chelating agent (NCA). LCGC International spoke to Makan Golizeh, corresponding author of the paper inspired by this research, about the study and the team’s use of liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) in their research.

A recent study used a liquid chromatography-drift tube ion mobility spectrometry-high resolution mass spectrometry (LC-DTIMS-HRMS) platform to contribute to characterizations of 175 per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) with authentic standards in a multidimensional manner.

Researchers have developed a method employing high performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection (HPLC-UV) to determine vitamin D3 in food (even in the presence of vitamin D2, and with a specific focus on egg yolk) in a cost-effective and quantitative manner.

Researchers employed direct infusion/liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry in their exploration of the potential of metabolomics to examine probable primary and secondary brain injury in severe traumatic brain injury.

Researchers from the University of Bordeaux (Villenave d'Ornon, France) report the development and validation of a rapid and quantitative analytical method measuring crown procyanidin concentration in red and white wines using ultra-high performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) coupled with a ultra-high performance liquid chromatography (Q-TOF) mass spectrometer.

A recent study aimed to comprehensively analyze the distribution and diversity of VOCs in 22 wild strawberry varieties using headspace solid-phase microextraction-gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (HS-SPME-GC–MS) technology.

Can a protein involved in delivering Vitamin D to target tissues have an altered serum profile in psoriasis patients with cardiovascular disease? Researchers used liquid chromatography (LC) to help find out.

LCGC International spoke to Michelle Klein from the Faculty of Chemistry of the University of Duisburg-Essen (Essen, Germany) about how, by using the green analytical chemistry tool Analytical GREEnness (AGREE) and the white analytical chemistry (WAC) framework, her team was able to conduct a comparative analysis of gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (GC–MS/MS), liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS), and the yeast-cell-based reporter gene assay (A-YES).

The objective of this study was to investigate contamination by 32 plasticizers in olive oil throughout its production and packaging process. Separation and detection were carried out by gas chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (GC–MS/MS), without the need for pre-concentration steps.

A recent study aimed to investigate the impact of lavender essential oil (LEO) and of its terpenic components on the properties of glioblastoma (GBM) cells in an in vitro model. The study demonstrated that LEO induces a proliferation slowdown and an impairment of cell migration of GBM cells besides reducing oxidative stress.

New research characterizes walnut milk residue according to its phenolic content and antioxidant and cytotoxic potential using ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography–electrospray tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC–ESI-MS/MS).

A recent study aimed to directly compare the changes in serum metabolites among very low birth-rate (VLBW) infants following the administration of the soybean oil-based lipid emulsion and soybean oil, medium-chain triglycerides, olive oil, and fish oil (SMOF) lipid emulsion using untargeted metabolomics techniques.

Differences in serum metabolites of sheep infected with Echinococcus granulosus were analyzed using ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) separation with tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) detection, providing a basis for the early diagnosis and pathogenetic study of cystic echinococcosis (CE) in intermediate hosts at the metabolomics level.

In forensic science, scientific testimony is routinely presented in court to juries who may have limited or no scientific background, putting law enforcement and defense personnel in the position of having to make rapid decisions in short timeframes based on findings of which they are not specialists. Katelynn Perrault Uptmor, Assistant Professor of Chemistry at William & Mary (Williamsburg, Virginia) believes that the introduction of new technologies into the framework of routine forensic analysis must therefore bridge the gap between introduction of new and novel analytical science and the communication of that science to a court of law, and that analytical chemistry research must be mindful of the need to fill this gap in promoting new technologies.