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This week's highlights feature our ongoing discussions on women in chromatography, an interview on the future of HPLC columns from analytica 2026, and cutting-edge applications of mass spectrometry techniques to analyze protein variations, the effects of sleep restriction on serum metabolites, and human scent traces on clothing.

Few scientists manage to shape not only a research field, but a culture. Carlo Bicchi belongs to that rare category. In this extensive interview, Chiara Cordero speaks to Carlo Bicchi, winner of the 2026 Marcel Golay Award as they both prepare to present at the 44th ISCC and 21st GC x GC Symposium, which takes place from May 17–22 2026 at the Conference Centre, Riva Del Garda, Italy. In part one, Carlo discusses pivotal moments in his illustrious career exploring gas chromatography (GC) and praises the influence of “Maestro” Pat Sandra.

While mussels are a vital and economically important food source, their filter-feeding behavior causes them to absorb environmental pollutants. Testing their tissue is challenging due to its high fat and protein content, so researchers successfully applied a QuEChERS-based extraction method coupled with high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS) to analyze samples.

Caroline West highlights how advances in SFC instrumentation are driving greener, more versatile analytical workflows across diverse applications.

In the final part of this roundtable discussion focused on the experiences, challenges, and contributions of women in chromatography, LCGC International spoke to Amandaa Brewer, Paola Tiedemann, Chelsea Plummer, and Jennifer Field about the responsibilities we all have to shape a more inclusive future.

At analytica 2026, Gert Desmet of Vrije Universiteit Brussel dicusses the key barriers to routine industrial or clinical adoption of these technologies, and how far away widespread use is.

Researchers utilized non-targeted liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) to analyze the serum metabolic profiles of elite male water polo athletes before and after an intensive training week. The LC-MS/MS analysis successfully screened 363 metabolites, revealing significant shifts in 33 out of the total metabolites evaluated—specifically those tied to lysine degradation and vitamin B6 metabolism. Ultimately, the study establishes LC-MS/MS as a highly effective analytical tool for monitoring molecular-level metabolic changes, providing valuable baseline data for optimizing athletic training and nutritional programming.

At analytica 2026, Shimadzu Corporation celebrated its 150-year legacy by displaying three new advanced analytical instruments designed to maximize operational efficiency.

Scientists recently compared two methods (LC-MS and nano-ESI-MS) used to analyze the small molecules inside individual cells—a process that helps us understand how cells function and react to their environment. While each method has its pros and cons, a joint study found that LC-MS provides a clearer, more comprehensive picture of the molecules inside the cells. When testing these methods on cells infected with a tuberculosis-like bacteria, LC-MS was significantly better at highlighting the differences between infected and healthy cells. These findings could help improve future research in infectious diseases, clinical diagnostics, and drug discovery.

Japanese researchers have developed an accelerated testing method to quickly and accurately determine if harmful chemicals leak from plastic packaging into food. Because real-time testing for long-shelf-life foods takes too much time, the team used liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) to accelerate the process. By testing sample plastics in various food-simulating liquids, they proved the LC-MS/MS method is reliable.

Researchers utilized untargeted reverse-phase liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (RPLC-MS) to analyze serum metabolite profiles under normal and sleep-restricted conditions. The RPLC-MS analysis successfully identified 90 circulating metabolites—including 14 of microbial origin—and demonstrated that sleep deprivation significantly disrupts the natural rhythmic cycles of these host and microbial compounds. These findings indicate that microbial metabolites detected via RPLC-MS could potentially serve as clinical biomarkers for the various health and metabolic risks associated with sleep loss.

At analytica 2026, Gert Desmet of Vrije Universiteit Brussel compares the main fabrication approaches across micro-pillar arrays, 3D-printed supports, and multi-capillary channel columns, weighing each against factors such as scalability, cost, and the degree of structural control they offer.

At analytica 2026, Gert Desmet of Vrije Universiteit Brussel discusses the drive toward perfectly ordered column structures in HPLC — from micro-pillar arrays to 3D-printed supports — and the fundamental theoretical gains in chromatographic performance that make this pursuit worthwhile.

Researchers evaluated the flavor quality of milk processed with alternating-current high electric field (AC-HEF) pasteurization compared to conventional ultrahigh temperature (UHT) treatment, which is known for producing undesirable "cooked" flavors. To analyze the differences, the team profiled volatile compounds using solid-phase microextraction gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and utilized gas chromatography-sulfur chemiluminescence detection (GC-SCD) specifically for sulfur-containing volatiles. The robust chromatographic analysis revealed that AC-HEF effectively suppresses the formation of off-flavors while maintaining favorable aromatic compounds, suggesting it is a promising alternative for producing shelf-stable milk with an improved flavor profile.

Markes International announced this morning the launch of the TC-30, a high-capacity multi-tube conditioner designed to improve data confidence, reduce operating costs, and maximize productivity in thermal desorption–gas chromatography (TD–GC) laboratories.

Researchers have optimized a headspace sorptive extraction (HSSE) method coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) to analyze human scent traces left on clothing. By extracting volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds and applying supervised machine learning algorithms, such as support vector machines (SVM) and partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), to the GC-MS data, the team achieved 100% accuracy in gender discrimination. This combination of optimized extraction, GC-MS analysis, and machine learning provides a rapid and automated forensic screening technique to help narrow down suspect or victim profiles based on trace evidence.

In the fifth part of this roundtable discussion focused on the experiences, challenges, and contributions of women in chromatography, LCGC International spoke to Amandaa Brewer, Paola Tiedemann, Chelsea Plummer, and Jennifer Field about the role that senior leadership can play in the path of early-career professionals.

Researchers successfully employed high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection (HPLC-FLD) to analyze atmospheric polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) across Quebec using Pleurozium schreberi moss. The chromatographic analysis targeted 10 PAHs to establish a rigorous spatial baseline of pollution and 15 PAHs to measure the environmental impact of the severe 2023 Canadian wildfires. The HPLC-FLD data revealed that while the wildfires did not increase total PAH concentrations, they caused distinct compositional shifts, proving the effectiveness of this analytical method in detecting regional pollution gradients and temporal source changes.

A worldwide study involving 12 research groups has confirmed that capillary zone electrophoresis combined with mass spectrometry (CZE-MS) is a highly reproducible and sensitivealternative to traditional methods for analyzing proteoforms, offering a way to separate these critical protein variations based on their charge-to-size ratio. LCGC International spoke to Kevin Jooß of the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, one of the authors of a paper outlining the study, about this work.

In the fourth part of this roundtable discussion focused on the experiences, challenges, and contributions of women in chromatography, LCGC International spoke to Amandaa Brewer, Paola Tiedemann, Chelsea Plummer, and Jennifer Field about the structural changes needed for greater inclusion.

Headspace solid-phase microextraction-gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (HS-SPME/GC-MS) and high-performance liquid chromatography with diode-array detection (HPLC-DAD) were used to evaluate 45 Brazilian artisanal chocolates, identifying 72 volatile compounds and quantifying methylxanthines. Results demonstrated that theobromine and caffeine concentrations strongly correlate with declared cocoa content, proving these chromatographic methods provide a reliable workflow for quality control, traceability, and fraud prevention in chocolate manufacturing.

LCGC International highlighted women in chromatography discussions, discussed a green method for authenticating olive oil, presented TD-GC-MS research on emissions from tactile toys, and reviewed recent and upcoming industry events including Pittcon and analytica 2026.

Headspace solid-phase microextraction coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry HS-SPME-GC-MS was used by researchers to analyze volatile organic compounds (VOCs) during goat cheese ripening over 150 days. They identified 68 VOCs and found that 2-butanone and 2-butanol serve as potential markers for the final maturation stage, offering a simple, low-cost method for early monitoring of cheese ripening.

Analytica 2026, March 24–27 in Munich, brings together 1100+ exhibitors alongside expert forums, live lab demos, and career events shaping the future of laboratory technology.

A session exploring the latest analytical and computational strategies in metabolomics/lipidomics is scheduled at analytica 2026 on Thursday, March 26, from 15:00–17:00 in ICM Saal 2. Four speakers from academia and industry will address the growing challenges of large, complex metabolomic data sets, from multivariate data analysis to single-cell multi-omics.

Stephan Wagner, Professor of Environmental Analysis at Fresenius University of Applied Sciences in Idstein and chair of an analytica conference session on plastics analysis, shares his insights on microplastic particles.

In the third part of this roundtable discussion focused on the experiences, challenges, and contributions of women in chromatography, LCGC International spoke to Amandaa Brewer, Paola Tiedemann, Chelsea Plummer, and Jennifer Field about the importance of representation in retaining women in the field.

At Pittcon 2026, Damià Barceló of the Universidad de Almería sat down with LCGC International to discuss sustainable analytical approaches for microplastics detection and the open challenges facing the field.