Ultra-high performance liquid chromatograph coupled to a time-of-flight mass spectrometer with ion mobility separation (UHPLC/IMS-QTOF-MS)

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Briefly after the foundation of Geisenheim University in 2013, the German Council of Science and Humanities has recommended the formation and strengthening of research-oriented professorships as well as the meanwhile established right for independently conducting doctorates. Thus, Geisenheim University now consequently supports the application of the newly appointed research professor, Prof. Dr. habil. Ralf Schweiggert, for funding of an Ultra-High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (UHPLC) system coupled to an ion mobility separation (IMS) device and a time-of-flight mass analyzer (TOF-MS).Currently, UHPLC/IMS-TOF-MS systems as well as high resolution mass spectrometers are unavailable at Geisenheim University. The requested system will allow the comprehensive and state-of-the-art characterization of technologically-, physiologically-, and regulatorily-relevant phytochemicals, residues, and contaminants in plant-based raw materials, foods, beverages, and processing by-products. Besides enabling high resolution mass determinations to determine the sum formula of molecular and fragment ions, the requested system allows the ion mobility-based separation of otherwise unresolvable isobaric and often co-eluting compounds. We expect to gain substantially deeper insights into the composition of plant materials, particularly foods, and their changes during post-harvest treatments, processing and storage. Thereby, the system will not only contribute to the development, optimization and analyses of novel and traditional foods in the future, but will also allow targeting legally relevant research questions such as the query for the origin of a food or that for elucidating which technology has been applied during food production.A decentralized management and utilization concept regarding the requested system is targeted, since the analytical competence to run the requested system is - at Geisenheim University - only available in the applicant’s workgroup. An analytical core facility is inexistent and not desired by Geisenheim University. Externalization of high resolution MS work has been tested and proven to be unsuitable for the research goals of the applicant. The requested system would not only allow the applicant’s workgroup to step up to the state-of-the-art and beyond, but would also ideally fit the analytical needs for the workgroup's research goals, being perfectly complementary to existing methods well established at the workgroup and Geisenheim University. Ultimately, the equipment would allow numerous new and innovative research opportunities along the whole food chain.