University of Leiden, Biosyn Group

Q: WHAT IS THE FOCUS OF YOUR LAB’S RESEARCH?

A: The research in the Biosyn group is focused on the design, synthesis and function of the four major types of biomolecules: nucleic acids, carbohydrates, peptides and lipids and hybrid structures thereof. These biomolecules and their derivatives are used in drug discovery and chemical biology, to develop synthetic methodology or as an inspiration for mimetic design.

Q: WHAT WAS YOUR PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE?

A: I started as organic chemist on Pt-adducts on self-made DNA fragments under supervision of Professor Dr. J. Reedijk. Following that, I switched to synthesis of bio-organic molecules on solid support under supervision of Professor Dr. J.van Boom. Currently I am working with sophisticated analytical equipment including many (prep) LCMS systems under supervision of Professor Dr. H. Overkleeft. With this equipment we show our facility to many other workgroups within and outside the University of Leiden.

Q: WHY DID YOU INCORPORATE THE EXPRESSION CMS INTO YOUR LABORATORY?

A: It’s easy, walk-up use with straightforward swapping of ESI and APCI sources make it a reliable, productive tool for determining synthetic success.

Q: HOW DID THE EXPRESSION CMS HELP RESOLVE YOUR CHALLENGES?

A: I incorporated the expression CMS as TLC/MS system because of its simplicity, low cost and the brilliant combination with the Plate Express (as a TLC interface).

Q: TO WHOM WOULD YOU RECOMMEND THE EXPRESSION CMS?

A: I recommend the expression CMS to people who want to use a robust system with simple handling (like organic chemists).

Creighton University, Department of Chemistry

Q: WHAT IS THE FOCUS OF YOUR LAB’S RESEARCH?
A: The synthesis of modified histidines for solid-phase peptide synthesis and new routes to exocyclic allenes.

Q: WHAT WAS YOUR PREVIOUS WORK FLOW OR CHALLENGE?

A: Some Nim-tritylated histidine analogues and exocyclic allenes provided weak or no molecular ions using other mass spectrometry methods.

Q: WHY DID YOU INCORPORATE THE EXPRESSION® CMS INTO YOUR LABORATORY?

A: It’s easy, walk-up use with straight-forward swapping of ESI and APCI sources make it a reliable, productive tool for determining synthetic success.

Q: HOW DID THE EXPRESSION® CMS HELP RESOLVE YOUR CHALLENGES?

A: ESI and APCI resolved extensive fragmentation observed with some analytes.

Q: TO WHOM WOULD YOU RECOMMEND THE EXPRESSION® CMS?

A: Organic synthesis labs and undergraduate programs needing a simple diagnostic tool for reaction outcomes.

Q: WHAT IMPRESSES YOU THE MOST ABOUT THE EXPRESSION® CMS?

A: Students find it straight-forward to use and its sources are easy to clean.

The Role of Mass Spectrometry in the Drug Discovery Unit’s Workflow – Medicinal Chemistry & the Advion CMS

The Drug Discovery Unit at the University of Dundee is met daily with a global task: address unmet medical needs and diseases in the developing world, and continuously build their innovative targets portfolio.

Learn from Susan Davis, a Medicinal Chemist with the unit, how she has processed 22,639 sample injections via the Advion compact mass spectrometer, and how it has assisted her research daily.

Also hear from Dr. Jack Henion, Advion’s Scientific Founder, as he joins for a Q&A session about mass spec and it’s role in drug discovery and disease prevention. 

This webinar examines the workflow of a medicinal chemist as they utilize compact mass spectrometry techniques for drug discovery and disease prevention.

Real-time and near real-time Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) Analysis by vAPCI- Compact Mass Spectrometry

The Loughborough University team has utilized the expression® CMS vAPCI source for a variety of applications including breath analysis, monitoring flavor and fragrance, plant metabolomics, food authenticity and spoilage, and microbiological monitoring. With the use of the expression® CMS, the team was able to successfully execute detection required for these applications quickly and easily.

A Medicinal Chemist’s View on using the Advion CMS

Explore how the expression CMS has been used by the Drug Discovery Unit at the University of Dundee. Learn how the medical chemistry team has integrated the instrument in to their everyday workflow. The team required a system with a small footprint that can be moved between labs, but was still capable of integrating with systems in their well-equipped laboratories. The expression CMS fit the needs of the organization and increased efficiencies in the lab.

University of North Carolina, Biomedical Research Imaging Center (BRIC)

Q: WHAT IS THE FOCUS OF YOUR LAB’S RESEARCH?

A: My research at the Biomedical Research Imaging Center (BRIC) focuses on the development and validation of novel radiolabeling methods and multimodality molecular imaging probes for various diseases, including cancer, diabetes, neuro-disease, and cardio vasculature disease. To be more specific, the major efforts of my current research include: 1) developing novel radiochemistry for cancer diagnosis, neuroimaging, cardiac imaging, diabetic research, drug discovery and development, and targeted radionuclide therapy;  2) developing multimodality molecular imaging agents; 3) developing novel nanotechnology and studying its biomedical applications; 4) developing pre-targeted drug delivery system for cancer imaging and therapy; and 5) performing PET related translational research.

Q: WHAT WAS YOUR PREVIOUS WORK FLOW OR CHALLENGES?

A: Sometimes we have a reaction, and we do not know which peak contained the product, so we send the sample to the mass spectrometry facility to be analyzed. Additionally, there are times when we have 10-20 peaks, and it is impossible to collect them all to be sent.

Q: WHY DID YOU INCORPORATE THE EXPRESSION® CMS INTO YOUR LABORATORY?

A: The convenience of having a mass spectrometer in our laboratory means that we can increase working efficiencies by not waiting 2-3 days for results from the LC lab. The expression® CMS is a good system for routine analysis.

Q: TO WHOM WOULD YOU RECOMMEND THE EXPRESSION® CMS?

A: I recommend the expression® CMS to any traditional organic and radiochemistry laboratory. I am impressed by the smaller size and by how simple it is to operate. We were able to use it quickly.

Benjamin List, Max-Planck-Institut für Kohlenforschung, Department for Homogeneous Catalysis


2021 Nobel Prize in Chemistry Recipient 

 

October 6, 2021: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has decided to award the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2021 to:

  • Benjamin List • Max-Planck-Institut für Kohlenforschung, Mülheim an der Ruhr, Germany
  • David W.C. MacMillan • Princeton University, USA

“for the development of asymmetric organocatalysis”

Building molecules is a difficult art. Benjamin List and David MacMillan are awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2021 for their development of a precise new tool for molecular construction: organocatalysis. This has had a great impact on pharmaceutical research, and has made chemistry greener.

Benjamin List, a true leader in chemistry, is an exceptional user of the expression® Compact Mass Spectrometer in the List Research Group. Read his full interview featuring the Nobel Prize announcement here.

 

Q: WHAT IS THE FOCUS OF YOUR LAB’S RESEARCH?

A: Our group focuses on the development of new catalysis concepts within the areas of organocatalysis, transition metal catalysis, and, to some extent, biocatalysis. Since 1999, our group concentrates on enantioselective organocatalysis as a fundamental approach complementing biocatalysis and transition metal catalysis. We have a profound interest in developing “new reactions”, designing and identifying new principles for the development of organocatalysts, expanding the scope of already developed catalysts, using organocatalysis in the synthesis of natural products and pharmaceuticals, and also investigating the mechanism by which organocatalysts activate their substrates. Furthermore, in 2005 our group has first conceptualized another approach to asymmetric catalysis, namely asymmetric counteranion directed catalysis (ACDC). This idea has not only progressed within the department but also at other institutions around the globe into a general strategy for asymmetric synthesis applied in organocatalysis as well as in transition metal catalysis and Lewis acid catalysis.

Q: WHATE WAS YOUR PREVIOUS WORK FLOW OR CHALLENGE?

A: The design and development of new asymmetric catalysts usually requires finding novel synthesis routes. Real-time characterization of the desired products and side products in the synthesis of new catalysts and precursors as well as in the exploration of novel reactions is thus very important with regard to saving time and costs.

Q: WHY DID YOU INCORPORATE THE EXPRESSION® CMS INTO YOUR LABORATORY?

A: We wanted an analytical method that allows a rapid characterization of reaction products combined with the lowest effort of sample preparation. The expression® Compact Mass Spectrometer coupled with Plate Expres® is the method of choice to provide reliable mass data directly from TLC plates and ASAP® (Atmospheric Solids Analysis Probe) allows for direct analysis from solutions and solid substances without any sample preparation. In addition, the easy and fast possibility of changing the ion sources between ESI and APCI gives us a wide range of options to characterize our analytes from non-polar to very polar compounds in both positive and negative mode simultaneously.

Q: TO WHOM WOULD YOU RECOMMEND THE EXPRESSION® CMS?

A: We recommend the expression® Compact Mass Spectrometer coupled with Plate Express® to any group with a focus on organic synthesis for usage as a routine tool to monitor chemical reactions.

Center for Free-Electron Laser Science (CFEL), Hamburg, Germany

Q: WHAT IS THE FOCUS OF YOUR LAB’S RESEARCH?

A: The lab’s research focus is time-resolved crystallography of proteins. Many of the catalytic processes involved occur too rapidly for us to study effectively. Therefore, we use our synthetic chemistry lab to prepare photosensitive compounds called photocages which can be incorporated into the proteins to inhibit or hinder reactions. Because they are photosensitive, they enable us to control reaction speed, making the study of these catalytic processes possible.

Q: WHAT WAS YOUR PREVIOUS WORK FLOW OR CHALLENGE?

A: Previously I was working in pure organic chemistry and other related disciplines such as supramolecular chemistry and organocatalysis. So it was quite challenging to move into the crystallography field in a campus like Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY) where there is almost no organic chemistry research undertaken.

Q: WHY DID YOU INCORPORATE THE EXPRESSION CMS INTO YOUR LABORATORY?

A: On the DESY campus there’s no chemistry department and, as a consequence, no instrumentation for the qualitative nor quantitative determination of organic compounds. With the Advion compact mass spectrometer we are now able to follow the process of most of our reactions which greatly facilitates our research.

Q: TO WHOM WOULD YOU RECOMMEND THE EXPRESSION CMS?

A: Organic chemists who are working continuously in the lab for the quick and easy determination of small molecules.

Albert-Ludwigs-University, Freiburg, Germany

Q: WHAT IS THE FOCUS OF YOUR LAB’S RESEARCH?

A: We investigate ionic systems to the fullest extent, both experimentally and theoretically. In doing so, we want to understand and exploit the fundamental principles that determine the behaviour of such systems.

Q: WHAT WAS YOUR PREVIOUS WORK FLOW OR CHALLENGES?

A: For sample analysis we use NMR, vibrational Spectroscopy and X-Ray Diffraction along with electrochemical measurements in our laboratory. However, for mass spectra the samples had to be given to the MS service of the chemistry department. This led to noticeable waiting times, so no reaction monitoring was possible. Also, some of the compounds usually lead to large memory effects and are therefore rather ‘unpopular’ at the MS service. Furthermore, a large part of the compounds we synthesize are air sensitive and could not be measured at all.

Q: WHY DID YOU INCORPORATE THE EXPRESSION CMS INTO YOUR LABORATORY?

A: With the expression CMS in our laboratory we can now use mass spectrometry as a standard analysis tool for reaction monitoring. PhD Students can measure their own samples directly after synthesis. They can even change the ion source on their own according to the nature of their samples. Samples with large memory effect are no longer problematic, as the inlet capillary can easily be cleaned. A major advantage is that we can now analyse highly air-sensitive compounds without difficulty and outside a glove box.

Q: WHO WOULD YOU RECOMMEND TO PURCHASE THE EXPRESSION CMS?

A: We would recommend the expression CMS to anyone who wants to implement MS as a fast and easy to operate standard method within their own lab.

University of Ljubljana, Slovenia

Q: WHAT IS THE FOCUS OF YOUR LAB’S RESEARCH?
A: In our Department of Medicinal Chemistry we have focus on the synthesis of novel molecules with biological activity. We synthesize molecules of natural origin, peptides and heterocyclic compounds. As integral part of the department’s work we also do drug analysis.

Q: WHAT WAS YOUR PREVIOUS WORK FLOW OR CHALLENGES?

A: The modern Faculty of Pharmacy provides state-of-the art analytical techniques. We have a 400 MHz NMR in our department and access to 600 MHz and 800 MHz NMRs in the Infrastructural Centre. Furthermore, we routinely use FT IR, DAD HPLC. At one point biggest bottleneck was MS, as we had access to HRMS, but we did not have MS in our department for routinely use in synthesis and analytical procedures.

Q: WHY DID YOU INCORPORATE THE EXPRESSION® CMS INTO YOUR LABORATORY?

A: We thought that a robust, easy to use MS would be most useful in our laboratory to make our work faster and most efficient. Versatile use, simple use of various ion sources, and direct application of samples from TLC or use of dissolved samples, were possibilities which persuaded us.

Q: WHO WOULD YOU RECOMMEND TO PURCHASE THE EXPRESSION® CMS?

A: We would recommend the expression® CMS to every medicinal chemistry department, who would use MS in a daily routine from undergraduate students to post-docs. Doing MS analysis is now a common and integral part of our work as well as doing TLC-MS-coupling with the Plate Express™. It is an excellent way for entry level to mass spectrometry, because of simple use, robustness and good results of analysis.