From sports anti-doping and workplace testing to clinical toxicology and forensic analysis, LC-MS has emerged as an invaluable tool for detecting a wide range of both known and unknown drugs and toxic substances within biological samples. Among the key challenges facing most toxicology labs today is the need to detect a ever-increasing number of substances at ever-decreasing concentrations. A pressing example is the growing opioid crisis, which has placed a demand upon testing not only for the abuse of prescription drugs but also for synthetic opioids, such as illicitly manufactured fentanyl. Expanding the scope of toxicology testing within hospital, commercial, forensic, and public health laboratories is critical to improving the surveillance of opioid use and overdoses and guiding the development of targeted prevention strategies. Below, discover how Thermo Scientific's innovative sample preparation platforms and all-in-one workflows are effectively addressing the current and emerging needs of toxicology testing.

Rapid MS tools help researchers tackle the opioid overdose crisis

The Applied Environmental Research Laboratories (AERL) at Vancouver Island University, Canada, conducts pure and applied research in analytical mass spectrometry to measure chemical determinants of environmental and human health. In the interview below, learn how the team is performing the rapid analysis of illegal drug content using Thermo Scientific™ TSQ Fortis™ Plus and Thermo Scientific™ TSQ Altis™ Plus triple quadrupole mass spectrometers with the Thermo Scientific™ VeriSpray™ PaperSpray ion source.

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The AERL team desired new technology that would allow them to set up a street-level drug-testing program, HarmCheck, to quickly identify dangerous substances such as fentanyl and carfentanil in street drugs. The resulting solution, based on the Thermo Scientific VeriSpray PaperSpray ion source connected to the Thermo Scientific TSQ Fortis Plus MS, can detect tiny quantities of street drugs and, within two minutes, provide a readout of exactly what the sample contains, including identifying dangerous opioids. To find out more, read the full story highlighted in this case study.

“Thanks to the new VeriSpray system, we’re now able to better monitor the evolving illicit drug situation and further protect people who use drugs (PWUD) from preventable harm.”

Professor Chris Gill, Co-director of AERL, Vancouver Island University

Featured technology: VeriSpray PaperSpray ion source

Improve turnaround time, reduce cost per test, and minimize sample preparation with the VeriSpray PaperSpray ion source, a fully automated, high-throughput, direct ionization technique used with the latest Thermo Scientific TSQ triple quadrupole mass spectrometers.

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Overdoses involving opioids killed more than 80,000 people in 2021, and nearly 88% of those deaths involved synthetic opioids, including fentanyl. To address the need to detect and identify emerging opioids, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in collaboration with Cerilliant Corporation, has released Traceable Opioid Material^® Kits (TOM Kits^®) – reference standards to aid the confirmation of fentanyl compounds, synthetic opioids, and other emerging drugs of concern. In this technical note, explore a method for quantitation of 22 TOM Kit^® fentanyl analog compounds in urine developed on the Thermo Scientific™ Vanquish™ HPLC system and Thermo Scientific™ TSQ Altis™ triple quadrupole mass spectrometer.

Additional resources
  • Screening and semi-quantitation: Comprehensive analysis of 212 fentanyl analog compounds
  • Quantitation of 22 fentanyl analog compounds on an Orbitrap Exploris 120 mass spectrometer

Leverage an all-in-one toxicology solution with Tox Explorer

The Thermo Scientific™ Tox Explorer™ collection provides an all-in-one workflow that combines efficient liquid chromatography with the latest mass spectrometry technologies to enable the detection and quantitation of a large panel of analytes in a single automated run.

In this workshop, presented at the 2022 Society of Forensic Toxicologists (SOFT) event in Cleveland, Ohio, applications specialist Kristine Van Natta reveals the evolution of the Tox Explorer Collection, an all-in-one LC-MS/MS solution that combines UHPLC and mass spectrometry technology with a growing library of more than 2100 compounds for screening and quantitation.

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“Tox Explorer Collection for Orbitrap Exploris 120 MS provides a powerful solution for forensic toxicology.”

Simon Hudson, Technical Director, LGC ASSURE Fordham, U.K.

Featured technology: Tox Explorer Collection

The Tox Explorer Collection comes equipped with a standardized LC-MS/MS method, UHPLC column, experimentally obtained database with retention times, and LC-MS/MS instrument set-up and application training to enable smooth start-up and implementation.

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Choose from two LC-MS platforms

‍The Tox Explorer Collection is now available with Thermo Scientific™ Orbitrap™ Exploris™ 120 and Thermo Scientific™ TSQ Quantis™ Plus triple quadrupole mass spectrometer options.

Discover the HRAM option with the Orbitrap Exploris 120, offering robust, reliable, and reproducible screening and quantitation of over 1,800 drugs of abuse in biological matrices.

Explore the TSQ Quantis Plus mass spectrometer option, enabling quantitation of more than 1,200 compounds using optimized SRM transitions and retention times. See how this can be used to quantify over 100 drugs of abuse in under 16 minutes.

Both MS options are complemented by Thermo Scientific™ TraceFinder™ software, facilitating rapid data acquisition, processing, and customized reporting, along with target analyte screening – all in one platform.

Additional resources
‍  • Testing for drugs of abuse in human blood to ANSI™/ASB™120 standards by high-resolution, accurate-mass mass     spectrometry
  • Detection of an expanded SAMHSA pre-employment panel by LC-MS
  • Quantitation of 106 drugs in urine using a fast 7-minute method by high resolution accurate-mass and triple quadrupole mass     spectrometry
  • Tox Explorer collection for drugs of abuse screening and quantitation

LC-MS is a well-established technique for the quantification of metabolites, lipids, proteins, and various other compounds in clinical research and diagnostics. Mass spectrometry (MS) is often considered the gold standard for the measurement of steroid hormones and is the method of choice for newborn screening. MS-based discoveries of novel clinical biomarkers are also playing increasingly important roles in disease risk assessment, screening, diagnosis, and prognosis, as well as therapy selection and monitoring. Most recently, ambient ionization MS-based techniques have also shown promise for point-of-care (POC) diagnostics. Explore these applications in greater detail through the curated resources below.

Direct mass spectrometry: the future of point-of-care diagnostics

In this presentation, Livia Eberlin, Ph.D., Associate Professor at Baylor College of Medicine, highlights the development of the MasSpec Pen and its applications in surgery, microbiology, and toxicology. This novel POC device is designed to enable medical professionals without MS expertise or experience to take advantage of the rich molecular information it can provide and enables the direct analysis of in vivo and freshly excised tissues.

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Surgeons detect cancerous tissue in seconds with MasSpec Pen

The MasSpec Pen is a hand-held device that acts as an intuitive interface between the surgeon and a mass spectrometer to provide rapid information on tissue identification and cancer diagnostics. Dr. Livia Eberlin explains, “The MasSpec Pen allows surgeons to perform non-destructive molecular analysis and identification of tissues in vivo to identify tissues even before resection, a capability currently unavailable in surgical practice.” Read the full story in this case study.

“What we aimed to address with the MasSpec Pen technology was a simple device between the mass spectrometer and the surgeon that was easy to use, biocompatible, and was something that the surgeons could routinely employ in surgery without having training in mass spectrometry.”

Dr. Livia Eberlin, Associate Professor, Baylor College of Medicine

Featured technology: Orbitrap Exploris systems

The Orbitrap Exploris 120 provides high resolution and mass accuracy with a compact footprint. This enables easy integration into a clinical setting, such as an operating room, making it the ideal mass spectrometer to pair with the MasSpec Pen.

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Hear from more experts on the latest developments in clinical LC-MS

Untargeted metabolomics in the fight for patient diagnosis

In this presentation, Dr. Annie Evans, Senior Director and Head of Core Research, Metabolon, discusses her research developing metabolomic-based precision medicine approaches to better diagnose and treat rare diseases. Evans and her team are working towards the goal of producing an MS-based single test that could diagnose hundreds to thousands of diseases.

Delivering high-precision healthcare
‍

In this presentation, Dr. Robin Kemperman, a Senior Mass Spectrometrist at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, will discuss how applying a method called high field asymmetric ion mobility (FAIMS) in combination with mass spectrometry (MS) can enhance the quality of projects within global metabolomics initiatives.

Clinical toxicology testing using novel sampling technologies

In this presentation, William Clarke, a Professor of Pathology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, explores innovative sampling technologies such as automated dried blood spot analysis and MasSpec Pen technology for toxicology testing using mass spectrometry.

Additional resources
 • Effortless and Streamlined Workflow for Absolute Quantitation of Therapeutic Monoclonal Antibodies using Promise         Proteomics mAbXmise™ kits and TSQ Altis Plus Mass Spectrometer
 • Simultaneous Detection of Respiratory Infectious Diseases using Immunoprecipitation and Liquid Chromatography-Tandem     Spectrometry
 • High flow LC-MS analysis of plasma digest for protein identification
 • Thermo Scientific™ FAIMS Pro Duo interface Brochure
 • FAIMS Pro interface Smart Note

Faced with the high cost of immunoassay antibodies and reagents, a growing number of clinical diagnostic laboratories are considering LC-MS for laboratory developed tests (LDTs). Despite this, there are few instruments available that are in vitro diagnostic (IVD) compliant and can be used for the development and optimization of LDTs. The new portfolio of Class I medical devices from Thermo Fisher Scientific addresses this need and offers a choice of triple quadrupole MS with the Thermo Scientific™ TSQ Altis™ MD Series and the Thermo Scientific™ TSQ Quantis™ MD Series for in vitro diagnostic analysis. Powered by a comprehensive software suite that conforms to IVD requirements, with an optional laboratory information system (LIS) connection, these systems are designed to provide clinical labs with options to meet varying sensitivity and productivity requirements. Both MS options are supported by the Thermo Scientific™ Vanquish™ MD HPLC system — a compact, yet powerful system with high throughput, speed, and sample capacity.

Featured technology: Vanquish MD HPLC system

Featured technology: TSQ Quantis MD Series mass spectrometer

Featured technology: TSQ Altis MD Series mass spectrometer

Explore LC-MS medical devices for IVD use in this brochure and discover 5 reasons why it is time to implement LC-MS for LDTs. Plus, download the resources below to explore the analytical performance of these instruments across a variety of clinically relevant molecules and sample types.

Using LC-MS to distinguish between vitamin D2 and D3

Explore multiple analytical methods for the HPLC-MS/MS analysis of 25-hydroxyvitamin D2 and D3 on a TSQ Altis MD triple quadrupole mass spectrometer.

A reliable and simple method for newborn screening

See how the Vanquish MD HPLC and a TSQ Quantis MD MS were used to quantify 12 amino acids and 13 acylcarnitine in dried blood spots.

Detecting SARS-CoV-2 with mass spectrometry

Learn about the robust, 4-minute, reliable targeted peptide absolute quantification assay developed to detect SARS-CoV-2.

In Vitro Diagnostic Medical Device*‍

*For in vitro diagnostic use. Specifications subject to change. Availability of product in each country depends on local regulatory marketing authorization status. Not all products are available in all countries. Please consult your local sales representative for details.