ICP-mass spectrometry in the biomedical sciences: pushing the boundaries of the application range

On the evening of Tuesday 29 April the section welcomed Professor Frank Vanhaecke from Ghent University to talk about ‘ICP-mass spectrometry in the biomedical sciences: pushing the boundaries of the application range’. Frank received the Royal Society of Chemistry’s prestigious ‘Theophilus Redwood award’ in 2023 for outstanding contributions to the chemical sciences in the area of analytical chemistry. 

Frank's talk discussed recently developed analytical methodology including the use of laser ablation – ICP-MS to reveal the distribution of (trace) elements across biological tissues, the determination of metal contents in individual cells and the use of metal isotope ratios for diagnostic and prognostic purposes.

Inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) is the most powerful tool for trace element analysis, as a result of which it is widely used in many application areas, including clinical analysis. While in clinical analysis, determination of essential and non-essential (toxic) elements in body fluids and tissues is considered a routine application, other approaches have not reached that status yet, despite their added value.

Frank showed how through the use of laser ablation (LA) as a means of sample introduction, a thin section of tissue can be interrogated point-by-point to reveal the distribution of targeted elements in a quantitative manner. Moreover, when combining LA with an ICP-MS unit equipped with a time-of-flight (ToF) mass analyser, a nearly complete elemental mass spectrum is available for every pixel on the tissue “map”.

The detection power of ICP-MS instrumentation has meanwhile been enhanced to such an extent that it also allows quantification of the content of exo- and endogenous elements in individual cells, using either traditional pneumatic nebulization or laser ablation as a means of sample introduction.

In addition, Frank showed how high-precision isotopic analysis of essential mineral elements can provide insights into biochemical processes and diagnostic/prognostic information, as isotope ratios can pick up on metabolic changes with higher sensitivity than element concentrations can and/or provide information that is not embedded in the element concentrations.

The added value of these more novel approaches was illustrated by discussing the results of a number of interdisciplinary research projects carried out at Frank’s labs in Ghent.

A video of Frank's presentation is embedded below or can be viewed on the RSC Belgium dedicated YouTube channel.

About Frank

Frank Vanhaecke is Senior Full Professor in Analytical Chemistry at Ghent University, where he also leads the Atomic & Mass Spectrometry  (A&MS) research group that specialises in the determination, speciation and isotopic analysis of (ultra)trace elements via ICP-MS. His group studies fundamental aspects of the technique and develops methods for solving challenging scientific problems in interdisciplinary contexts. Frank is (co)author of more than 500 papers and the work of his has team received a number of prestigious awards, including the RSC’s ‘Theophilus Redwood award’ in 2023.

White Gold at BSB

A good crowd of RSC Belgium members and friends braved some wintry weather on 14 March to hear a fascinating talk from forensic archaeologist Dr. Andrew Shortland of Cranfield University in the Swoosh Lounge at the British School of Brussels. Andrew described the work of his group in characterising porcelain - the 'white gold' of antiquity. 

Andrew started with the story of the 'Ruislip Vase' a seemingly modest piece of porcelain discovered in a very ordinary house in north-east London in 2010. Having been used recently as a bookend it was recognised as an 18th-century porcelain vase made for the Qianlong Emperor of China. Valued initially at £1 million it sold at auction for over £ 50 million: a world-record for such an artefact. However, the object was not collected or paid for by the purchaser and the vase has recently been finally sold by auctioneers Bonhams for a more modest - but still substantial - £20 - 25 million.

Clearly porcelain is truly a 'white gold'. This reputation has held true across the centuries and recently the volume of sales of antique porcelain has increased rapidly. And, of course, this attracts the interest of 'entrepreneurs'. Dr Shortland brings the techniques of modern analysis to porcelain with the aim of identifying copies and fakes in Chinese and European porcelain.

Art of porcelain
The production of the thin glass-like ceramic known as porcelain probably began in China in the first millennium BC, but the earliest fine examples date from circa 650 AD. From the early medieval period Chinese porcelain was being exported and was greatly prized throughout the royal courts of the old world.

There was huge competition to create porcelain in Europe to rival those pieces produced in East Asia and in the early years of the eighteenth century this was accomplished, first at Meissen and then throughout Germany, France, England and elsewhere. Early examples of both Chinese and European porcelain are rare and growing in value - as witnessed by the Ruislip vase story. They have therefore been extensively copied, both by the factories themselves and by others seeking to imitate their wares.

Andrew's talk showed how two modern non-destructive analytical techniques - hand held X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) and Laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) can distinguish between genuine early objects and later copies and fakes in both Chinese and European porcelains. His research has been conducted with a number of the world's leading auction houses who - obviously - have a keen interest in the findings.

The insights provided by Dr Shortland was appreciated by our audience and there was a very good discussion after his presentation about the determination of the true provenance of antiques and art objects.