On the Nature of Mass Spectrometer Analyzer Contamination

Sample throughput in electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) is limited by the need for frequent ion path cleaning to remove accumulated debris that can lead to charging and general performance degradation. Contamination of ion optics within the vacuum system is particularly problematic as routine cleaning requires additional time for cycling the vacuum pumps. Differential mobility spectrometry (DMS) can select targeted ion species for transmission, thereby reducing the total number of charged particles entering the vacuum system. In this work, we characterize the nature of instrument contamination, describe efforts to improve mass spectrometer robustness by applying DMS prefiltering to reduce contamination of the vacuum ion optics, and demonstrate the capability of DMS to extend the interval between mass spectrometer cleaning. In addition, we introduce a new approach to effectively detect large charged particles formed during the electrospray ionization (ESI) process.

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Expanding Lipidome Coverage Using LC-MS/MS Data-Dependent Acquisition with Automated Exclusion List Generation

Untargeted omics analyses aim to comprehensively characterize biomolecules within a biological system. Changes in the presence or quantity of these biomolecules can indicate important biological perturbations, such as those caused by disease. With current technological advancements, the entire genome can now be sequenced; however, in the burgeoning fields of lipidomics, only a subset of lipids can be identified. The recent emergence of high resolution tandem mass spectrometry (HR-MS/MS), in combination with ultra-high performance liquid chromatography, has resulted in an increased coverage of the lipidome. Nevertheless, identifications from MS/MS are generally limited by the number of precursors that can be selected for fragmentation during chromatographic elution. Therefore, we developed the software IE-Omics to automate iterative exclusion (IE), where selected precursors using data-dependent topN analyses are excluded in sequential injections. In each sequential injection, unique precursors are fragmented until HR-MS/MS spectra of all ions above a user-defined intensity threshold are acquired. IE-Omics was applied to lipidomic analyses in Red Cross plasma and substantia nigra tissue. Coverage of the lipidome was drastically improved using IE. When applying IE-Omics to Red Cross plasma and substantia nigra lipid extracts in positive ion mode, 69% and 40% more molecular identifications were obtained, respectively. In addition, applying IE-Omics to a lipidomics workflow increased the coverage of trace species, including odd-chained and short-chained diacylglycerides and oxidized lipid species. By increasing the coverage of the lipidome, applying IE to a lipidomics workflow increases the probability of finding biomarkers and provides additional information for determining etiology of disease.

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Contribution of the surface dipole moment and the contact potential-induced disjoining pressure to the stress balance at a three-phase contact

The contact between three insulators results in a set up of contact potentials related to the adsorbed dipole moment at each surface. The produced electric field applies force (disjoining pressure) on each interface. This disjoining pressure is a long-ranged force (1/distance²) which is proportional to the difference between the dielectric permittivities of the phases on the two sides of the interface and, for small angles, to the square of the contact angle. The contact potential leads to a logarithmic perturbation of the profile of the three-phase contact zone.     

‘Pourbaix sensors’: fluorescent molecular logic gates for pE and pH

Abstract

From the cross-fertilisation of fluorescent pH indicators and fluorescent redox switches, our group has established a new class of molecular sensor that operates as two-input molecular logic gates. These molecular sensors, known as ‘Pourbaix sensors’, are named in honour of Marcel Pourbaix, who developed the pH–potential diagrams for the various states of metal ion species in aqueous solution. This review highlights the evolution of ‘Pourbaix sensors’ based on anthracene and naphthalimide fluorophores. Potential applications of this class of molecule in fields such as corrosion science, cell biology and biomedical diagnostics are highlighted.     

Gas mixture flow in nanoporous media in the presence of surface forces. The dusty-gas model

The dusty-gas model has been generalized to the case of gas mixture flow in nanoporous media under the conditions of the action of surface forces. A basic set of transport equations has been derived proceeding from kinetic equations for a gas mixture and dust particles. To take into account the surface forces, the interaction between a gas and dust particles has been represented as a sum of a long-range potential, which reflects the surface forces, and a short-range potential, which describes gas molecule scattering on the surface of pore walls. The contribution of the long-range component has been taken into account in the self-consistent approximation, while the short-range component has been considered in the standard manner. The surface forces have been shown to have a substantial effect on the transfer of mixed gases through porous bodies; in particular, it becomes possible to separate mixture components due to different potentials of the interaction of their molecules with pore surface.     

Methodology of chemometric modeling of spectrometric signals in the analysis of complex samples

A generalized algorithm of the multivariate simulation of spectrometric data is considered for solving typical analytical problems, like the determination of the concentration of a particular analyte and the assignment of a sample to one of predefined classes. In particular, we considered preliminary data processing, exploratory analysis, optimization of a chemometric model, calculation of performance characteristics, transfer of the model to other spectrometers, and automation of chemometric processing for the routine analysis of samples. To illustrate the potential of the method, we selected a system of bovine and porcine heparin, mixtures of soy and sunflower lecithin, and a set of red and white wine samples as test samples. Partial least squares and discriminant analysis were used as chemometric methods. We used proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) to record signals. Using the MATLAB environment, chemometric programs were developed for automated data processing in the context of problems under consideration and for the transfer of multivariate models to other spectrometers. Based on the results obtained, a methodology is proposed for the multivariate analysis of spectrometric data, which can be used in the analysis of various types of matrices and spectrometric signals.     

Determination of the surface area of loose metal deposits by impedance spectroscopy

The surface area and fractal dimensions of the surface of loose copper and zinc deposits obtained within 30 and 300 s at direct current sixfold exceeding limiting diffusion current on a smooth electrode were in situ determined by impedance spectroscopy. Impedance measurements were performed in 0.5 M Na₂SO₄ solution. A constant phase element taking into account the distribution of double-layer capacitance over the fractal surface of the electrode was used in the equivalent impedance scheme. Specific surface calculated with regard to the weight of the released metal slightly varied within 300 s (from 6.16 to 6.55 and from 7.12 to 5.89 m²/g for copper and zinc deposits, respectively). Fractal dimensions estimated by chronopotentiometry were given for comparison. Fractal dimensions found by two methods for loose copper and zinc deposits agree with each other; their values (2.19–2.75) testify that the surface of the deposits densely fills the space.     

An electrochemical aptasensor for cytochrome C,based on pillar[5]arene modified with Neutral Red

An electrochemical aptasensor is developed for the highly sensitive determination of cytochrome C, using a change in the redox current of Neutral Red covalently bound to terminal carboxyl groups of decasubstituted pillar[5]arene as a signal. The inclusion of the analyte into the complex with an aptamer reduces peaks of redox current of the dye through the dissociation of electron transfer chain in the surface layer. The aptasensor enables the determination of 1 nM to 1.0 mM of cytochrome C in the presence of 1000-fold excesses of albumin, polyethylene glycol, and lysozyme as models of interfering components in biological fluids.     

Mechanism of reaction of selenium elimination in diacetophenonyl selenide under the action of reduced glutathione

Products of reaction between the organoselenium xenobiotic, diacetophenonyl selenide (1,5-diphenyl-3-selenapenta-1,5-dione), and reduced glutathione at different molar ratios and pH values were studied by HPLC and TLC. Reaction intermediates, S-(acetophenylselenyl)glutathione and glutathione selenodisulfide, and reaction products, acetophenone and hydroselenide anion, were detected. The reaction scheme proposed earlier was confirmed.     

Use of PLS Discriminant Analysis for Revealing the Absence of a Compound in an Electron Ionization Mass Spectral Database

A mathematical model is proposed for revealing the absence of a compound to be identified in an electron impact mass spectral library. The mathematical model (developed based on PLS Discriminant Analysis) can be represented as a “black box” which provides an answer whether a compound to be sought is absent or present in a database. The match factors of top ten candidates among the possible ones were used as input data. More than 5000 objects (mass spectra) were used at the steps of training, validation, and testing. The developed classification model provides correct prediction (of whether a compound is absent from the library) in 28.4% cases, while only 1.2% of compounds present in the database were incorrectly classified as the absent ones.