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MEASURING UP I
n his keynote PittCon presentation: the 2018 Wallace H. Coulter Lecture: Analytical science in precision medicine: Facing the challenges of the 21st century healthcare, Jeremy Nicholson, head of the department of surgery and cancer, and director of the MRC-NIHR National Phenome Centre Faculty of Medicine, in London, highlighted the importance of analytical technologies in tackling these challenges. ‘The world faces many emergent medical threats and healthcare challenges – our mission is to apply state-of-the art analytical technologies to address current and future unmet medical needs in ways that result in clinical action ability,’ He added: ‘The translational demands are substantial, but large scale metabolic phenotyping approaches are now proving effective in the real world of patient care, creating both new diagnostics and prognostics but also in defining population health with new data models that will improve disease prevention in the future.’ Nicholson’s major research focus is on the development of diagnostic and prognostic molecular phenotyping and computational technologies as applied to problems in personalised healthcare, microbiome-host metabolic signalling, metabolic diseases and cancer. But analytical instrumentation is not just about medical applications, it is found across all industrial sectors, and has become increasingly important in the food sector for the determination of quality and authenticity.
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A key aspect in the development of personalised medicine is measurement and analytical technologies. Neil Eisberg highlights the latest analytical instrumentation on show at PittCon 2018 in Orlando, Florida, US Food solutions Oxidative staling of beer occurs by a free radical process. During storage, even trace amounts of transition metals such as iron or copper will catalyse the conversion of molecular oxygen into reactive oxygen species (ROS). One ROS is the hydroxl free radical, which rapidly oxidises components of the beer to free radicals that react further, creating a chain reaction that results in carbonyl end products such as aldehydes and ketones, giving beer a ‘cardboard-like’ flavour. Bruker’s updated Beer Freshness solution is the result of a collaboration with FlavorActiv (www. flavoractiv.com). It is claimed to be the only method to measure how process design and operations can improve or deteriorate beer freshness throughout the production cycle. It is now available on Bruker’s benchtop microESR (electron spin resonance), supported by applications training, customised reagents, GMP flavour standards and support.
Similarly, rancidity of edible oil is a major problem in food related industries. It occurs during storage and is caused by oxidation of unsaturated fatty acids, resulting in foul odours and tastes in the final product. Bruker has developed a benchtop micro ESR, Edible Oil solution, specifically for measuring oxidation and shelf life in liquids. The key metrics such as induction time and end-point free radical concentration are automatically calculated. An innovative solution for the analysis of food, the NMR FoodScreener, using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, has also been developed by Bruker. The method relies on the acquisition of the spectroscopic fingerprint specific to each individual sample. These profiles are compared, for example, with a large database of authentic wine samples using a multivariate statistical approach. Profiling by NMR combines quality control and testing of safety issues and authenticity in an unique way. At PittCon, Bruker announced the first US installation of this high-throughput and highcontent solution, enabling North American honey producers to screen their samples for adulteration and authenticity, in order to ensure their brand’s reputation and value. Bruker also announced that OAC International has approved its MALDI Biotyper solution for two new Official Methods of Analysis (OMA) for the identification of pathogenic and nonpathogenic bacteria. The OMAs cover common food pathogens (Salmonella spp, Cronobacter spp, Listeria spp and Listeria monocytogenes), and
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identification of other bacteria, such as quality indicators, spoilers and technological species. The food industry has traditionally relied on reference wet chemical methods as the primary standard for fat analysis. These long, antiquated, and hazardous processes suffer from repeatability challenges and take several hours to complete. This has led to the use of rapid fat analysers that are calibrated against reference wet chemistry. While faster, these systems often require extensive method development as results are affected by sample composition. CEM introduced a new ORACLE fat analyser, based on a recent breakthrough in NMR technology. It is claimed to be the first rapid analyser that requires no method development and can analyse fat in any unknown food sample in 30 seconds with reference chemistry accuracy and exceptional repeatability. The instrument comes in two configurations, rapid and high-throughput. The rapid system is paired with the newly released SMART 6 moisture/solids analyser allowing for moisture and fat analysis in less than 5 minutes. The highthroughput option incorporates a robotic system allowing for the unattended processing of up to 100 samples. The SMART 6 was named one of the top new products at Pittcon by Instrument Business Outlook. It features two major innovations: the ability to accurately analyse both wet and dry samples and a significant reduction in sample drying times, due to the development of iPower technology, which features a multi-frequency energy source for sample drying. There is a high resolution touchscreen with software for complete statistical analysis and a built-in library of methods. Materials science For the automotive industry, Bruker’s new UMT TriboLab brake material screening module is said to deliver cost-effective development of friction materials by reducing the total characterisation time from days to hours. The module offers an industryfirst benchtop test that simulates the standard SAE J2522 (AK Master) test and correlates well to dynamometer tests. Researchers and formulators can significantly accelerate brake pad development by screening for
top performing materials before complete dynamometer testing, saving significant cost for automotive manufacturers and getting products to market faster. Expanding the capabilities of the Dimension FastScan and Icon AFM systems, Bruker’s new NanoMechanics Lab offers the most accurate and user-friendly AFM-based nanomechanical characterisation. It is a suite of force-mapping modes that perform quantitative nanoscale investigation, extending from soft hydrogels and polymers to stiff metals and ceramics. Utilising advanced algorithms and exclusive AFM probe manufacturing methods, these modes deliver the most repeatable and accurate highvolume quantitative measurements, adding in data cubes for multidimensional nanoscale analysis of materials. Previewed at Pittcon, LECO’s new thermogravimetric moisture determinator, the TGM800, provides a high precision, automated solution while meeting requirements of a primary loss-on-drying method. It offers a number of time-saving features including the ability to measure up to 16 samples at a time with drying time end-point recognition, and intuitive Cornerstone software with flexible method settings, analysis control and reporting. It is applicable to a wide variety of sample matrices including food, feeds, milled products, and agricultural materials. Microscopy In 2017, Bruker acquired Luxendo, a spin-off of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) that develops proprietary lightsheet fluorescence microscopy instruments. On show at PittCon, Luxendo’s single plane illumination microscopy (SPIM) technique significantly reduces
sampling times over conventional laser scanning confocal microscopes, while reducing phototoxicity and damaging side effects on living specimens. SPIM microscopes enable research advances in small organism embryology, live-cell imaging, brain development and cleared brain tissue, and optogenetics applications. Mass spectroscopy Shimadzu released the MALDI-8020, marking its return to benchtop matrix assisted laser desorption ionisation time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS). It is claimed to achieve performance specifications similar to those of larger, more expensive MALDI-TOF models but in a significantly smaller footprint. It is said to improve efficiency and accelerates analysis through a new load-lock system for rapid sample target introduction and a solid-state laser for fast data acquisition speeds. This compact system enables low-level detection of proteins, peptides and polymers, among other analytes, easily accommodating standard laboratory workflows such as peptide mass finger printing for simple protein ID confirmation, in-source decay (ISD) and polymer distribution analysis. Shimadzu also launched the Nexera Mikros microflow liquid chromatography mass spectrometry system. Configuration options include a direct injection system for sample volume-limited analyses for rapid sensitive micro LCMS analysis without sample loss. A trap and elute system is available for analyses with larger injection volumes or when some sample clean-up is desirable. A make-up flow system includes the addition of a post-column makeup flow pump, allowing mobile phase modifiers to be added to ensure the highest ionisation efficiency in the MS source. The system’s UF-Link allows operators to correctly and easily connect any microflow column, ensuring a zerodead volume connection every time. The pump provides a wide range of flows from micro (0.1 μL/ min) to semi-micro (500 μL/min) in both isocratic and gradient elution modes. Shimadzu has signed
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an agreement with Phytronix, world leader in high throughput analysis in mass spectrometry, to offer the industry’s first triple ion source. Ideal for both screening and confirmation work, this new high-speed platform is claimed to improve productivity in high-throughput laboratories performing toxicology, drug discovery and food safety applications. It incorporates the Phytronix laser diode thermal desorption ion source (LDTD), and is designed to match the speed of the Shimadzu LCMS-8060 triple quadrupole mass spectrometer. Thermo Fisher introduced the TSQ 9000 Triple Quadrupole GC-MS and ISQ 7000 Single Quadrupole GC-MS systems, which are said to provide maximum uptime, ease-of-use and unprecedented sensitivity to meet increasing regulatory requirements in environmental, food and forensic laboratories. The enhanced iCAP TQs ICP-MS system expands Thermo’s range of detection capabilities for use in certain industrial applications, including semiconductors. The ultrapure sample analysis performance of this technology is claimed to bolster the QA/QC and wafer-fabrication process, providing semiconductor and ultra-high purity chemical facilities with simple and effective analytical solutions. LECO introduced the Pegasus GCHRT+ 4D, its latest generation GCxGCTOFMS instrumentation. A number of new features have been incorporated with the HRT’s powerful high resolution technology for expanded analytical capabilities and improved confidence in the analysis of complex samples. Encoded Frequent Pushing (EFP), a method of pulsing
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the orthogonal accelerator multiple times per spectrum to dramatically increase duty cycle, is claimed to provide increases in both sensitivity and dynamic range by factors of ten. LECO also showed the benchtop Pegasus BT 4D, coupling the benchtop Pegasus BT with the high performance GCxGC thermal modulation system. This combination offers the ability to interrogate challenging samples where the best sensitivity is needed. The StayClean ion source eliminates the need for source cleaning. LECO’s ChromaTOF software works seamlessly with the Pegasus BT 4D to automatically process user data and remove the guesswork involved with analyte identification and quantification. Chromatography The new Thermo Scientific Dionex ICS-6000 high performance ion chromatography (HPIC) system is said to be designed for ultimate flexibility and performance in routine environmental analysis. It features automated performance monitoring and diagnostic capabilities, offering users on-demand support to facilitate uninterrupted operation and improve laboratory productivity. For high-throughput analyses, biotherapeutic characterisation and pharmaceutical quality control, Thermo Scientific’s new generation Vanquish Duo UHPLC systems are designed to maximise throughput while providing scientists with a more complete understanding of their samples. The system can be used to characterise large and small molecules for pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical applications. The new Chromeleon XTR laboratory management system builds on Thermo Scientific’s so-called ‘gold standard’ chromatography data system (CDS) to ensure process adherence, data integrity and complete regulatory compliance with standards including cFDA, USFDA, MHRA, EU and cGXP. Waters introduced the ACQUITY Arc Bio System, an iron-free, bio-inert, quaternary liquid chromatograph engineered for the efficient transfer and improvement of bioseparation analytical methods
regardless of the LC platform on which the original method was developed. Shimadzu released its i-Series Plus integrated high performance liquid chromatograph (HPLC) with an automatic pretreatment function enabling operations such as automatic sample dilution, reagent addition, and sample co-injection with an internal standard. The column oven enables high-temperature analysis with a maximum temperature setting of 90oF, offering increased column oven capacity, allowing users to store up to three 300mm columns. It offers enhanced quantitative performance with a wider linear range and excellent repeatability for the smallest injected volumes of 1 µL or less with ultrafast sample injections of