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ICR Science Highlights

Mass spectrum of the initial sample extracted in methanol, with mass-scale zoom inset at m/z 536.

March 27, 2024

The 21T FT-ICR MS instrument enables the molecular characterization of atmospheric hazes - like that on Saturn’s moon, Titan - and water vapor to bett…


Representative DBP molecular formula identifications for a molecule that contains (a) one chlorine atoms. Confident assignment requires the ultrahigh mass resolving power and mass accuracy provided by 21T FT-ICR MS.

November 16, 2023

Identification of toxic compounds in drinking water formed through disinfection reveals more than 3500 toxic, chlorinated species that can only be obs…


Overview of the accessibility needs for scientific research in a large-scale user facility like the MagLab.

September 11, 2023

A specialized cybersecurity approach was developed to meet the needs of a user research facility.


(A) Broadband 21 T FT-ICR mass spectrum of Suwanee River Fulvic Acid, a Natural Organic Matter reference standard.  (B) Mass-scale zoom inset that highlights the need for resolving power sufficient to separate species

July 14, 2023

The 21 T FT-ICR mass spectrometer identified four times the number of species in natural organic matter than lower magnetic field systems, providing a…


X-ray crystal structure of normal (KRAS4B)

February 17, 2023

Researchers used the MagLab to produce the first clarified map of KRAS proteins in colon cancer tumors. Twenty-eight additional forms of the KRAS prot…


Coal tar pavement sealant contains 50,000 to 75,000 ppm of carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Weathering by sunlight and rain can contaminate natural waterways through oxidation of the PAHs contained in the pavement sealant.

October 18, 2022

New research shows that high concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) found in coal tar pavement sealants are oxidized into toxic, wa…


Network diagram suggesting the presence of sulfur-containing (black) PFAS chemicals with a range of perfluoroalkyl (CF2, blue) and ethoxy (C2H4O, orange) chain lengths.

July 18, 2022

Using the world's most powerful mass spectrometer, scientists have developed a new method to profile complex PFAS mixtures at the molecular level, fac…


The Human Proteoform Project separates cell types found in blood.

March 11, 2022

A new Blood Proteoform Atlas maps 30,000 unique proteoforms as they appear in 21 different cell types found in human blood. The MagLab's 21 tesla FT-I…


Sunlight breaks down plastics, creating thousands of compounds whose environmental impact is not understood.

October 25, 2021

Sunlight can chemically transform plastics from consumer plastic bags into complex chemical mixtures that leach into the ocean. Understanding the impa…


Map of the drainage basins of six Arctic rivers, with water sampling points shown in red

June 23, 2021

Researchers share new insights on the role of seasonality in dissolved organic matter (DOM) composition in large Arctic rivers. Researchers share new …


Novel unique molecular forms of proteins - aka proteoforms - were discovered in cancer cells when researchers reanalyzed data from the ICR facility's 21T FT-ICR instrument (right) with new software (left; figure adapted from Wenrong Chen and Xiaowen Liu. Proteoform Identification by Combining RNA-Seq and Top-Down Mass Spectrometry. Journal of Proteome Research, 2021, vol. 20, pp. 261-269)

June 10, 2021

Reuse of the MagLab's Ion Cyclotron Resonance facility data improved understanding of protein fragmentation and aided the design and release of new al…


Relative abundances of water-soluble oxygen-containing compounds, where Ox on the horizontal axis denotes the summed abundances of all compounds containing x oxygen atoms. Data are shown after 24, 72, and 168 hours of simulated sunlight irradiation of road asphalt binder.

March 29, 2021

Road asphalt is made from aggregate (rocks) mixed with a "binder” from the residue remaining after extraction of gasoline and oils from petroleum crud…


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October 16, 2020

Analysis of intact proteins using mass spectrometry is a difficult task that can be simplified by prefractionation, a process in which protein mixture…


Red: Phosphatidylcholine O-36:2 Green: Sphingomyelin 40:1 Blue: Phosphatidylcholine 40:6

May 22, 2020

Combining spatial imaging technology with ultrahigh performance FT-ICR mass spectrometry provides users with the unique ability to create tissue image…


Figure

February 25, 2020

A new method to characterize crude oil corrosion shows that corrosion in acidic crude oils depends on the specific structures of the acid molecules, i…


"Hb AC" denotes heterozygous β-chains: one normal, and one with a single mutation of glutamic acid to lysine at amino acid sequence position 6.

August 19, 2019

Precise determination of hemoglobin sequence and subunit quantitation from human blood for diagnosis of hemoglobin-based diseases.


Tandem mass spectrometry provides sufficiently detailed spectra to make a structural characterization

March 01, 2019

Scientists will be able to apply the technique to characterize similar molecules, helping develop vaccines and drugs to treat bacterial infection.


Up to two fluorine atoms are added to the Sc3N@C80 fullerene cage, as shown in this FT-ICR mass spectrum

November 19, 2018

Researchers have discovered a new method to create encapsulated carbon nanomaterials that contain fluorine. Known as fullerenes, these nanocages are p…


Identification of two classes of Ni- and VO-porphyrins by FT-ICR MS.

August 21, 2018

Molecular fossils of chlorophyll (called porphyrins) more than 1.1 billion years old find suggest that photosynthesis began 600 million years earlier …


Schematic of LC/MS approach that leverages the high IR absorbance of sulfoxides for selective dissociation and discovery of S-sulfonated peptides.

February 27, 2018

Protein oxidative damage is a common occurrence in a number of diseases, including cancer, neurodegenerative, and cardiovascular disease. Yet, little …


1. Patients with multiple myeloma produce different antibodies, depending on which cells are cancerous. 2. Scientists use FT-ICR MS/MS to examine the antibodies. 3. They can tell exactly which antibodies a patient is producing. 4. This knowledge allows them to personalize treatment for each patient.

August 09, 2017

New technique could lead to precise, personalized cancer diagnosis and monitoring.