John Chasse

Research on plastics in aquatic environments is well-established, but little is known about their presence, pathways, and effects in soil ecosystems. The iMulch project aims to address this need as well as the growing concern of plastic pollution in soils. Focusing on developing and validating methods to detect micro- and macroplastics in soils and drainage waters, with an emphasis on how drainage water impacts municipal wastewater treatment, a key aspect of the study is analyzing plastic emissions from agricultural mulch films. We spoke to Carmen Wolf of the Institute for Environment and Energy, Technology and Analytics e.V. (IUTA) in Duisburg, Germany, corresponding author of a recent paper on the project, about the investigations involved and how separation science was used in their experimentation.

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.

As the poultry sector in Côte d`Ivoire (The Ivory Coast) expands and huge quantities of waste are generated, researchers analyzed the risks associated with the discharge of poultry slaughterhouse waste in public landfill sites in Abidjan, the county’s largest city. Chemical and microbiological analysis of 30 poultry slaughter waste samples from 10 Abidjan communities was performed using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and detection of pathogenic bacteria on specific media, respectively.

The nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) flunixin meglumine has been approved by the FDA for fever associated with bovine respiratory disease or mastitis and for control of pain from foot rot in cattle. A study determining the pharmacokinetics of a single dose of flunixin transdermal formulation in American bullfrogs used ultrahigh-pressure liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC–MS/MS) to determine plasma flunixin concentrations.

Researchers explored whether peels from different commercial and local apple samples could serve as a source of phenolic bioactive compounds potentially linked to the prevention of type 2 diabetes. The quantification of 37 individual phenolic compounds was performed by high performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC–MS/MS).

A recent study evaluated the suitability of pyrolysis–gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (Py-GC–MS) for detecting and quantifying micro- and nanoplastics (MNPs) in human blood. LCGC International spoke to Cassandra Rauert of the Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences at The University of Queensland (Woolloongabba, Australia), corresponding author for the paper resulting from this study, about her team’s work.

Researchers investigated the potential association between plasma apolipoprotein M (APOM) levels and the risk of adverse cardiovascular outcomes in individuals with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Plasma sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) levels were measured by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).

A review article by researchers at the School of Chemistry at Tel Aviv University describes cold electron ionization (EI), discusses its benefits, and demonstrates several unique applications for its use, including cannabinoids analysis, synthetic organic compounds analysis, whole blood analysis for medical diagnostics, isomer distribution analysis for improved fuels and oils, and explosives analysis.

While comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC×GC-MS) is a powerful analytical technique, the complexity and volume of data generated pose significant challenges for data processing and interpretation, limiting a broader adoption. To overcome this, a recent paper in Briefings in Bioinformatics presented GcDUO, an open-source software designed specifically for the processing and analysis of this data.

A joint study conducted by the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia (Modena, Italy) and the University of Genoa (Genoa, Italy) aimed to optimize a liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC-MS) method using a zwitterionic phosphorylcholine hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) column for detecting persistent and mobile organic contaminants (PMOCs) in wastewater. LCGC International spoke to researchers Caterina Durante (corresponding author of the piece) and Samuele Pellacani about their method and the results yielded.

Comprehensive information was derived through the utilization of a QuEChERS-UHPLC–MS/MS and GC–MS/MS method for the detection of 211 volatile and stable pesticide residues in 90 date fruit samples.

Researchers from Stanford University’s School of Medicine and Stanford Health Care report the development of a liquid chromatography high-resolution mass spectrometry (LC–HRMS) method for identifying hemoglobin (Hb) variants. The method can effectively separate several pairs of normal and variant Hb subunits with mass shifts of less than 1 Da and accurately identify them in intact-protein and top-down analyses.

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.