Enabling advancements in research of biomarkers

Kim Ekroos PhD, Founder & CEO Lipidomics Consulting and Kelly Moser PhD, Lab Operations Manager and Applications Scientist, MOBILion Systems examine advancements in research of biomarkers for early diagnostics and effective treatments for neurodegenerative disorders with High-Resolution Ion Mobility Mass Spectrometry

Although the first descriptions and classifications of lipids appeared almost two centuries ago, it is only with relatively recent developments in separations technology and analytical instrumentation that healthcare and pharmaceutical development scientists have been able to delve deeply into their structures, synthesis, and metabolism.

One significant example of this growth in knowledge is research demonstrating the importance of sphingolipids, namely their key role across a range of neurodegenerative disorders, cancer, and other diseases.

Analytical challenges in fully characterising complex lipid structures remain, however, with researchers calling for easier-to-use, more insightful methodologies and technologies as they search for improved biomarkers and novel therapeutics. Now, SLIM-based High-Resolution Ion Mobility (HRIM) coupled mass spectrometry (MS) can address previous limitations, providing a new powerful analytical option to advance lipidomics research. In-depth quantitative detail of the brain ganglioside lipidome, produced by a novel industry collaboration using HRIM-MS, is presented.