Inside the Laboratory: The Gionfriddo Group at the University at Buffalo

Inside the Laboratory is a joint series with LCGC and Spectroscopy, profiling analytical scientists and their research groups at universities all over the world. This series will spotlight the current chromatographic and spectroscopic research their group is conducting, and the importance of their research in analytical chemistry and specific industries. In this edition of “Inside the Laboratory,” Emanuela Gionfriddo, PhD, an associate professor of chemistry at the University at Buffalo, discusses her group’s current research endeavors, including using solid-phase microextraction (SPME) coupled to liquid chromatography (LC) and gas chromatography (GC) to further understand the chemical relationship between environmental exposure and disease and elucidate micropollutants fate in the environment and biological systems.

The Gionfriddo Laboratory at the University at Buffalo contributes to the field of analytical chemistry with findings and new technologies for separation, preconcentration, and detection of micropollutants in complex samples. The group explores questions about the distribution and partitioning of micropollutants in the environment and biological systems using microseparations for preconcentration and mass spectrometry (MS) for structural identification and detection at ultra-trace levels. To better understand routes of exposure and the effects of xenobiotics in living systems, the Gionfriddo Laboratory uses miniaturized extraction methodologies, such as solid-phase microextraction (SPME), coupled to gas chromatography (GC) and liquid chromatography (LC), or in conjunction with mass spectrometry (MS).

University at Buffalo North Campus. Photo Credit: © University at Buffalo, the State University of New York, Douglas Levere

Emanuela Gionfriddo is the lead investigator of the Gionfriddo Laboratory. She received her PhD in Analytical Chemistry at the University of Calabria, Italy, before undertaking a post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Waterloo, in Ontario, Canada. She started her teaching career as an assistant professor of chemistry at the University of Toledo, spending five years in the role until her promotion to associate professor in 2023. She currently serves as an associate professor of chemistry at the University at Buffalo and as an editorial advisory board member for various academic journals and publications, including LCGC International, Analytica Chimica Acta, Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry, Green Analytical Chemistry, and Advances in Sample Preparation. She has received many honors and awards during her career thus far, including the 2022 Satinder Ahuja Award for Young Investigators in Separation Science, the 2023 LCGC Emerging Leader in Chromatography Award, the 2023 Eastern Analytical Symposium Young Investigator Award, and the 2024 Chinese American Chromatography Association Young Investigator Award.

Recently, Gionfriddo took some time to sit down with LCGC International to discuss her group’s work in using extraction methodologies and chromatographic techniques to understand environmental pollutants distribution in biological and environmental samples, as well as the transition of relocating her analytical laboratory from Toledo, Ohio, to Buffalo, New York.

Prof. Emanuela Gionfriddo, PhD, of the University at Buffalo. Photo Credit: © Emanuela Gionfriddo

Can you talk about the analytical techniques that your group used in your most recent research project?

My research group utilizes separation techniques and MS to elucidate the chemical composition of complex media and understand the partition of emerging environmental pollutants in heterogeneous environmental and biological samples. In particular, we use SPME in its diverse modes and configurations as an extraction and preconcentration tool prior to analysis via GC or LC. We have also developed interesting applications for the direct coupling of SPME to MS via direct analysis in real-time (DART). Recently, we have linked our experimental findings with statistical modeling (Bayesian Hierarchical Modeling) to deconvolute and correct matrix effects emerging from the analysis of biofluids.

Can you explain the importance of your research within the broader field of analytical chemistry or in a specific industry/application?

The methodologies we develop in my laboratory offer a high degree of selectivity and preconcentration by minimizing the production of laboratory waste; in this context, we promote green analytical chemistry practices that are critical nowadays in the industry for resource conservation and, more broadly, to minimize the impact on the environment. Moreover, our work on understanding the chemical equilibria of organic pollutants in heterogeneous environmental systems is critical to assess and predict their partition in the environment that, in turn, leads to critical findings on their distribution at environmental interfaces and on their chemical transformation under diverse environmental conditions. A deep understanding of molecular interactions in complex media also raises the need for innovative ways to perform measurements (and that’s what we do!), moving from simple models to real systems, which poses the main challenge in separation and environmental sciences. By applying our methodologies to biological tissues and biofluids, we aim to elucidate the chemical relationship between environmental exposure and disease.

How do you stay updated with advancements in analytical chemistry techniques and technologies?

I read LCGC! I also periodically survey the main journals in the field. I need to admit that professional social media channels and networks provide useful insights into new technology and research. That is why I appreciate it when authors repost their work on social media channels; I encourage especially junior scientists to do so to highlight their new findings and hard work!

Can you discuss a recent innovation or development that you find particularly impactful or exciting?

There have been so many exciting developments in analytical sciences lately that it would be hard to summarize all of them in a few lines. Recent research efforts that I find exciting involve the miniaturization of separation processes for sample preparation and chromatography, with the development of portable instrumentation. I am also intrigued by recent work on the use of three-dimensional (3D) printing to produce microextraction devices; these efforts definitely expand the accessibility to microextraction technology in many laboratories and stimulate researchers' creativity with the infinite designs and configurations that 3D printing allows.

You recently moved your laboratory from the University of Toledo to the University at Buffalo. Could you describe the logistical challenges you encountered when moving your laboratory to a new state?

There are many logistical and technical challenges when moving an analytical chemistry laboratory. Different factors need to be considered when moving analytical equipment, such as securing the instrument for storage and transportation and safely transporting it to the new laboratory (make sure your instruments fit in elevators and through doors). When preparing a new laboratory, one must ensure it has adequate temperature control and ventilation (especially when operating instruments like mass spectrometers that can produce heat). It is also important to check (and eventually upgrade) the power supply in terms of emergency lines and types of power outlets and consider plugging the most sensitive instruments into uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems or emergency power lines. When some of the equipment cannot be moved and new equipment is acquired, translating the existing methods to new instrumentation may require some extra time and ingenuity. Resuming research projects in a completely different environment is not always straightforward and requires some time. As a rule of thumb, cataloging and labeling everything that is moved can save A LOT of headaches when getting ready to start research in the new facility and equip the new laboratory; I was lucky that my team did an excellent job at this.