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Noureddine Melikechi of the Department of Physics and Applied Physics at the University of Massachusetts (Lowell, MA) saw an urgent need for the development of an untargeted and unbiased method to distinguish Gulf War illness (GWI) patients from non-GWI patients; he and his associates utilized laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) in their efforts to meet that need.

Diagnosis of Gulf War Illness Using Laser-Induced Spectra Acquired from Blood Samples

Spray paint is often used by vandals for creating graffiti, as well as for criminals to leave signs, messages, and blots to conceal the left traces at the scene of their efforts. Rajinder Singh and his colleagues in the Department of Forensic Science at Punjabi University (Punjab, India) have used attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FT-IR) spectroscopy for nondestructive analysis of 20 red spray paints of different manufacturers, which could possibly be encountered at a crime scene, particularly in case of vandalism. Singh spoke to Spectroscopy about the findings, and the paper that resulted from their efforts.

Chemometric Analysis on ATR-FT-IR Spectra of Spray Paint Samples for Forensic Purposes 

Meat fraud has emerged as a growing concern globally. The adulteration, substitution, or mislabeling of meat products has resulted in negative economic effects, such as unfair competition in the global marketplace, as well as ethical concerns, because consumers want to know what is in the meat they are consuming. Ismail H. Boyaci of Hacettepe University and his team have explored using laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) for protein-based analysis and the identification of meat species. Spectroscopy recently spoke to Boyaci about this work. 

Using Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) for Protein-Based Analysis and the Identification of Meat Species

Determining the quality of the food we consume is important not just for reasons of safety, but for verifying authenticity as well. Changmou Xu, a Research Associate Professor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL), and his colleagues have been exploring methods for food analysis that are rapid but do not harm the environment or the analysts. 

Investigating Food Purity Using Raman Spectroscopy Combined with Machine Learning

As global food supplies and security have been challenged by water scarcity and climate variations, the expected increase in food demand will require a corresponding increase in crop productivity and disruptive improvements in agricultural production systems, including implementing strategies to mitigate the degradation of crop yield caused by plant diseases. Several groups have explored the use of Raman spectroscopy for rapid diagnosis of such diseases.

Rapid Detection and Quantification of Plant Innate Immunity Response Using Raman Spectroscopy

Jerome Workman Jr. serves on the Editorial Advisory Board of Spectroscopy and is currently with Unity Scientific LLC. He is also an adjunct professor at Liberty University and U.S. National University. He can be reached at jworkman04@gsb.columbia.edu.

Denise M. Mitrano is an Assistant Professor of Environmental Chemistry of Anthropogenic Materials at ETH Zurich in the Department of Environmental Systems Science. Her research is directed to understanding the impact and interaction of nanoparticles in the environment using atomic spectroscopy techniques, such as inductively coupled plasma–mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and single-particle ICP-MS (sp-ICP-MS). She is the winner of the 2022 Emerging Leader in Atomic Spectroscopy Award. Chosen by an independent committee, the Emerging Leader in Atomic Spectroscopy Award recognizes the achievements and aspirations of a talented young atomic spectroscopist who has made strides early in his or her career toward the advancement of atomic spectroscopy techniques and applications. We recently interviewed Mitrano about her work.

Gaining an Understanding of Nanoparticles in the Environment Using Atomic Spectroscopy: Denise M. Mitrano, the 2022 winner of the Emerging Leader in Atomic Spectroscopy Award 

As forensic analysis continues to advance, such as in the understanding of source identification and analysis of trace quantities of bodily fluids, spectroscopic techniques and machine learning are playing a significant role. Igor K. Lednev, a chemistry professor at the University at Albany, SUNY, in Albany, New York, has been working in this field with his team. The analytical methods currently under investigation include Raman spectroscopy, attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR FT-IR) spectroscopy, and advanced chemometric classification and analysis methods. We recently interviewed him about his work. 

Investigating Forensics Applications of Raman Spectroscopy, ATR FT-IR, and Chemometrics

A tutorial and spreadsheet for the validation and bottom-up uncertainty evaluation of quantifications performed by instrumental methods of analysis based on linear weighted calibrations were presented by Ricardo J.N. Bettencourt da Silva of the University of Lisbon in Lisbon, Portugal, and colleagues. This software tool was successfully applied to the determination of the mass concentration of Cd, Pb, As, Hg, Co, V, and Ni in a nasal spray by ICP-MS after samples dilution and acidification. Bettencourt da Silva spoke to Spectroscopy about applying this software tool and the implications for a better understanding of quantitative analytical results. 

Determination of Elemental Impurities in a Nasal Spray Using ICP-MS 

The limited availability of table-top extreme ultraviolet (XUV) sources with adequate fluxes and coherence properties has resulted in a lack of nonlinear XUV and X-ray spectroscopies to free-election lasers (FELs). Michael Zuerch of the Department of Chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley, along with colleagues from ten laboratories across three countries, has conducted the first extreme ultraviolet second harmonic generation (XUV-SHG) experiment above the Ti M edge (32.6 eV), also representing the first table-top demonstration of SHG at photon energies beyond the UV regime. 

Advances in Table-Top Extreme Ultraviolet Second Harmonic Generation

Emmanuel Lalla of York University in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, as well as his co-authors, recently presented an in-depth characterization of a set of samples collected during a 28-day Mars analog mission conducted by the Austrian Space Forum in the Dhofar region of Oman. Lalla spoke to Spectroscopy about this research, as well as how various methods of spectroscopic analysis can complement each other in analysis.

Combined Spectroscopic Analysis of Terrestrial Analogs from a Simulated Astronaut Mission Using the Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) Raman Sensor

Spectroscopy Interviews