Symposium: Atomic Tools as Solutions to Molecular Problems

Session 290, Room 255, 8:30 a.m.

This Monday morning session will be presided over by Jacob T. Shelley of Kent State University.

The session will begin with a presentation by Gary M. Hieftje of Indiana University titled “Plasma Spectrometry - Not Just for Atoms Anymore.” Hieftje will focus on plasma sources that are capable of molecular characterization and speciation in applications such as spots in thin-layer chromatography or 2D gel electrophoresis.

The next presentation in the session is titled “Laser Ablation Molecular Isotopic Spectrometry (LAMIS) – Direct Solid-Sample Isotopic Analysis Through All-Optical Means” and will be delivered by George Chan of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Chan will present an overview of the theoretical principles of LAMIS and will discuss the analytical figures of merit and challenges of the technique.

Gunnar Schwarz of ETH Zurich will present the next talk, titled “Single-Cell-Based Tissue Analysis by Isotopically Tagged Antibodies Using Laser Ablation-cy TOF.” This presentation will discuss various in-house built laser ablation systems and ablation cell geometries for fast screening of tissue and how the wavelength of the laser for tissues is less crucial than for geological samples.

Following a 15-min recess, Gerardo Gamez of Texas Tech University will present a talk titled “‘Say Cheese’: Getting the Molecular Picture with Plasmas.” Gamez will discuss the use of glow-discharge optical emission spectroscopy for analyzing biological thin sections and imaging methods for molecules used for therapeutic compounds, contrasting agents, and toxicology studies.

The final presentation in the session is scheduled to be given by Jacob T. Shelley and is titled “The Atomic Side of Molecular Mass Spectrometry.” This presentation will discuss a novel plasma source for obtaining molecular, structural, and atomic information when it is coupled with mass spectrometry. Shelley will describe the source’s design, operation, and representative applications.