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Advances in Forensic Analyses: When to Use GC-MS/MS, LC-MS/MS, and high-resolution accurate-mass spectrometry (HRAM)
What’s the best tool to use? With the availability of GC-MS, LC-MS/MS, and HRMS to perform toxicology, seized drugs analysis or arson investigations forensic scientists may be left in the dark on the clear benefits of the different technologies. Choosing the best one ultimately depends on the application.
Gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) are established in forensics for routine targeted testing. However, new challenges such as fast evolving designer fentanyls or synthetic cannabinoids have increased demand for MS solutions that go beyond conventional GC-MS and LC-MS/MS. HRMS solutions such as high resolution accurate mass (HRAM) Orbitrap MS is accurate to 5 decimal places and performs multiple scan events within one run. This enables screening, quantification and confirmation of suspected drugs of abuse (DOA) within the same experiment. High resolution full scan data also provides retrospective analysis for identifying previously unknown DOA.
In this presentation we will discuss the advantages, applications, and case studies for utilizing GC-MS, LC-MS/MS, and HRAM/HRMS.
About the presenters
Charles Kazarian is an Applications Chemist for Thermo Fisher Scientific. He has an undergraduate education in medical technology and chemistry from the Chicago Medical School followed by graduate education in pharmacology and toxicology supplemented with analytical and clinical chemistry at Michigan State University. He came to Thermo Fisher Scientific in February of 2014 after working for 16 years at the Navy Drug Screening Laboratory in Great Lakes, IL as a lead analytical applications toxicologist, certifying scientist, laboratory inspector and expert witness for the Department of Defense (DoD) Forensic Toxicology program where his major role there was the development, validation and dissemination of drug and contraband testing methods for all DoD drug testing laboratories using SPE, GC/MS, LC/MS and LC/MS/MS.
Rory Doyle is the Senior Product Application Specialist - Team Lead of the Demo Lab for Thermo Fisher Scientific based in New Jersey. Prior to coming to Thermo Fisher Scientific, Rory was the Manager of Clinical and Forensic Application Scientists, AFO for Agilent Technologies and has been a Clinical Scientist/Laboratory Manager for Quest Diagnostics. He also worked for the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Washington, D.C. as the Deputy Chief Toxicologist and for the California Department of Justice as a Forensic Scientist in Toxicology as well as a Senior Criminalist at the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. He is from Ireland and studied biochemistry and toxicology in Ireland, England, Scotland and USA. Interesting note- Worked for John Fenn at Yale University and I did not know how important he was until after I left.