A comprehensive platform to enable high-throughput sample preparation and multidimensional separation for exposomics research

一个综合平台，可实现暴露组学研究的高通量样品制备和多维分离

• 批准号: RTI-2022-00537
• 负责人: Jobst, Karl
• 金额: $ 8.3万
• 依托单位: Memorial University of Newfoundland
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Research Tools and Instruments
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2021-01-01 至 2022-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=741765
• 关键词: comprehensive; platform; enable; throughput; sample

The "exposome" encompasses the totality of environmental exposure during the course of a lifetime. Environmental exposures are widely acknowledged to play an integral role in chronic disease, but many exposure-disease associations remain ambiguously defined at best. In chemistry and chemical biology, nongenetic risk factors manifest as endogenous and exogenous chemicals that result from lifestyle, diet, radiation, stress and exposure to environmental pollutants. In contrast with the genome, the exposome is variable and thus requires reliable measurements of exposures that evolve over time. There is an urgent need for new analytical tools that will enable frequent, cost-effective and minimally invasive exposure measurements, most appropriately obtained from small quantities of blood (e.g. dried blood spots). However, the obstacles to further research in this field are formidable: The identities of most environmental toxicants and their role in causing chronic disease are unknown; and c. 90% of unknown environmental pollutants in a drop of blood are not detectable using existing analytical platforms. A flow modulator is proposed to address these challenges; support novel research in environmental and analytical chemistry; and increase interdisciplinary collaboration in research and HQP training, while making otherwise cost-prohibitive research accessible inhouse. The requested infrastructure is an integrated system that consists of a thermal desorption inlet to enable pollutant analysis in large numbers of samples of small quantities of blood; a flow modulator to enable enhanced separation of complex environmental and biological mixtures; and an autosampler to enable unattended analysis of samples. The device will enable frequent, non-invasive and cost effective measurements using dried blood spots (DBS). The instrumentation will also serve the dual purposes of first, enabling groundbreaking research in analytical chemistry, separation science and environmental health; and secondly, support training for the next generation of environmental analytical chemists in Canada.

“暴露量”包括一生中所受环境暴露的总量。人们普遍认为环境暴露在慢性疾病中起着不可或缺的作用，但许多暴露与疾病之间的联系充其量仍是含糊不清。在化学和化学生物学中，非遗传风险因素表现为生活方式、饮食、辐射、压力和暴露于环境污染物中产生的内源性和外源性化学物质。与基因组相比，暴露体是可变的，因此需要可靠的随时间变化的暴露测量。迫切需要新的分析工具，以便能够频繁、具有成本效益和微创暴露测量，最适合从少量血液（例如干燥的血斑）中获得。然而，这一领域进一步研究的障碍是巨大的：大多数环境毒物的特性及其在引起慢性疾病中的作用是未知的；c.现有的分析平台无法检测到滴血中90%的未知环境污染物。提出了一种流量调节器来解决这些挑战；支持环境化学和分析化学方面的新研究；并在研究和卫生质量管理培训方面加强跨学科合作，同时使成本高昂的研究能够在内部进行。所要求的基础设施是一个集成系统，包括一个热解吸入口，以便对大量少量血液样本进行污染物分析；一种流量调节器，可增强对复杂环境和生物混合物的分离；和一个自动进样器，使无人值守分析的样品。该设备将实现使用干血点（DBS）进行频繁、非侵入性和经济有效的测量。该仪器还将达到双重目的：首先，使分析化学、分离科学和环境卫生方面的开创性研究成为可能；其次，支持加拿大下一代环境分析化学家的培训。