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Discoveries

Hydrate your skin with “biotics”: Understanding the impact of pre/postbiotics on skin health

Our skin, beyond being a physical barrier, hosts a diverse community of microorganisms known as the skin microbiota. “Biotics” have gained attention for their potential to enhance the skin’s health, though their exact mode of action is still unclear. MS-based metabolomics has emerged as a powerful tool to characterize the chemical composition of the skin surface and correlate it with microbial communities. Using CSI:FingerID, researchers identified changes in the skin metabolome that are more pronounced than changes in the microbial composition, suggesting that even subtle shifts in microbial abundance can lead to significant effects on the skin.

Franziska Hufsky 2023-09-22 1 Comment

Discoveries

Potential risk of impurities in pesticides: Elucidating structurally related impurities using ZODIAC

Thiacloprid is a first-generation, widely used, neonicotinoid insecticide. Its persistence in the environment and potential adverse effects on human health have raised significant concerns. Elucidating the impurity profile of pesticides is crucial for assessing their environmental impact and potential risks, and setting acceptable limits for impurities. Using enhanced molecular formula identification with ZODIAC, researchers demonstrate an approach for identifying structurally related impurities in pesticides.

Franziska Hufsky 2023-09-11 No Comments

Discoveries

The sky is burning: Elucidating brown carbon composition using CSI:FingerID

Brown carbon, arising from the combustion of organic matter, exerts a significant influence on atmospheric radiation and global climate. To fully comprehend its impact on atmospheric processes, a thorough characterization of the light-absorbing brown carbon molecules is imperative. Using CSI:FingerID, researchers have successfully annotated 100 brown carbon chromophores, 33 of which have never been reported before. Through the identification and characterization of these chromophores in diverse atmospheric samples, we gain invaluable insights into their origins, behavior, and the profound implications they have on radiative forcing, cloud formation, and the intricate web of global climate change.

Franziska Hufsky 2023-07-05 No Comments

Discoveries

Green silver: Unveiling the role of biomolecules in plant-based nanoparticle synthesis with SIRIUS

Metal nanoparticles from gold, silver, iron, copper, and others, range in size from 1 to 100 nanometers and have a broad variety of applications in computing, optics, cosmetics, food industry, medicine, and water treatment. Silver nanoparticles, known for their antimicrobial properties, are effective for remediating contaminated waters. Plant extracts are used as reducing agents for the environmentally friendly synthesis of silver nanoparticles. To improve this synthesis, identifying the biomolecules involved in the process is crucial. UHPLC-QTOF-MS and SIRIUS identified the key phenolic compounds involved in the silver reduction.

Franziska Hufsky 2023-06-28 No Comments

Discoveries

Befriend your competitor: CSI:FingerID identifies metabolite linked to dual-species biofilm pathogenesis in cystic fibrosis

In the world of microbiology, there’s an ongoing battle between different bacterial species competing for survival and dominance. However, under certain conditions, two species can actually thrive together in a dual-species biofilm. The cooperation between P. aeruginosa and S. aureus in cystic fibrosis leads to increased disease severity. But so far, only little is known about the chemical communication mechanisms between those bacteria. CSI:FingerID identifies a metabolite that could be related to the increased pathogenesis of this dual-species biofilm in cystic fibrosis.

Franziska Hufsky 2023-06-14 No Comments

Discoveries

It’s in your breath: pediatric asthma diagnosis using CSI:FingerID compound annotation

Pediatric asthma poses diagnostic challenges due to its variable presentation. Breath analysis could be a game-changer in pediatric allergic asthma management. By identifying unique exhaled metabolic signatures using SESI-MS and CSI:FingerID, this cutting-edge approach distinguishes children with allergic asthma from healthy controls, aiding accurate diagnosis and personalized treatment.

Franziska Hufsky 2023-05-26 No Comments

Discoveries

Long-term storage in biobanks: Identifying unstable metabolites with CSI:FingerID and CANOPUS

Neonatal dried blood spots are not only important for newborn screening but also a powerful source for investigating the potential metabolic etiologies of various diseases using untargeted LC-MS-based metabolomics. So far it is unclear whether the metabolites in those samples remain stable in storage. CSI:FingerID and CANOPUS help to investigate the stability of metabolites and classes of molecules.

Franziska Hufsky 2023-05-11 No Comments

Discoveries

A liverwort under stress: compound classification with CANOPUS to detect metabolic shifts

Liverworts are chemically diverse plants with unique cell organelles responsible for the synthesis and storage of specialized metabolites. Untargeted metabolomics was used to analyze the metabolic stress response of liverworts without isolating individual metabolites. CANOPUS classified the affected compounds, and helped to map the biochemical pathways of the unique stress response of liverworts compared to vascular plants.

Franziska Hufsky 2023-03-31 No Comments

Discoveries

Scouring the oceans: Revealing the chemical potential of marine microorganisms with SIRIUS

Marine microorganisms offer a rich source of bioactive compounds with unique structures and remarkable biological activity. This makes them an important resource for the search for new therapeutic compounds, which is one of the most pressing challenges of our time. To narrow down the search to the most promising microorganisms, SIRIUS is nearly doubling the number of natural products annotated to estimate the chemical potential of microbial extracts.

Franziska Hufsky 2023-03-23 No Comments