European Network of Fourier-Transform Ion-Cyclotron-Resonance Mass Spectrometry Centers

Project Information

EU_FT-ICR_MS

Grant agreement ID: 731077

DOI

10.3030/731077

Project closed

EC signature date 24 November 2017

Start date 1 January 2018

End date 31 December 2022

Funded under

• EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Research Infrastructures

Total cost

€ 5 032 451,97

EU contribution

€ 4 988 746,50

Coordinated by

CENTRE NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE CNRS
France

Periodic Reporting for period 4 - EU_FT-ICR_MS (European Network of Fourier-Transform Ion-Cyclotron-Resonance Mass Spectrometry Centers)

Reporting period: 2022-07-01 to 2022-12-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

The goal of the EU_FT-ICR_MS project (grant agreement 731077) is to establish a European network of FT-ICR (Fourier Transform Ion Cyclotron Resonance) mass spectrometry (MS) centers in association with a SME software company to afford access to all European academic and industrial researcher to very high-resolution mass spectrometry. Mass spectrometry (MS) has become the most ubiquitous analytical techniques in use today, providing more information on the composition and the structure of a substance from a smaller amount of sample than any other techniques. In many police TV series, the mass spectrometer answers all questions. It is almost true as mass spectrometry in used in many fields of day life: pollutant identification, illicit drug enforcement, food adulteration, newborn screening… as well in many scientific fields: detection of biomarker of disease, epigenetic modifications, ascertaining trace of life in space… MS is characterized by the existence of a large range of mass analyzers leading to instruments from less than 50 thousand euros to several million euros. Among the MS instruments FT-ICR MS are the most powerful as they offer up to 10 folds higher mass resolving power and mass accuracy than any other MS technique. The EU_FT-ICR_MS network includes 11 FT-ICR MS centers from 8 different European countries and 1 third country (Russia), 2 SMEs and an associated European FT-ICR MS manufacturer. The overall objectives EU_FT-ICR_MS project consists in affording 1000 days of Transnational access, in organizing 12 practical short course and 4 summer schools (2 for end users, 2 for advanced users), to develop open source software which allow to treat the data obtained by the sites and to set-up robust acquisition protocols for the more common kind of samples.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

The End User School 1 (EUS1) has been organized at the University of Eastern Finland in Joensuu during July 2018. The Advanced User School 1 (AUS1) was the second school organized was held at the Faculty of Science of the University of Lisboa (Portugal). Due to Covid-19 pandemics, the AUS2 and EUS2 have delayed to Fall 2021 and Fall 2022 respectively. The AUS2 has been organized in September 2021 in Prague (Czech Republic) and EUS 2 in Lille France in December 2022. All these schools gathered more 50 European participants and have been very successful. The slides of the lectures may be found on the EU_FT-ICR_MS website. Eleven practical Short Course 1 (SC1) with training on the FT-ICR MS were delivered during the EU_FT-ICR_MS project. Most were overbooked as soon they have been advertised. The number of participants to the SC ranged from 10 to 20. For all Short Course and School the student feedback received via a “satisfaction survey” was extremely positive.
The proposal to organize the 14th edition of the European FTMS conference in Lisbon, Portugal was presented by C. Cordeiro at the 13th European FTMS Workshop (Freising Germany, April 2018) and accepted and was scheduled in April 2020. Due to Covid-19 pandemics, and in concertation with the American FT-ICR congress the European FTMS, has been delayed to July 2022 around 150 people from Europe but also from over the world attended the event.
The total number of days offered by the consortium was exceeded, with more than 1181 days offered for TNA accesses, resulting in an increase of 18% in comparison to the original proposal of 1000 days. The submission of a follow-up project by the same researcher is an indicator of the high level of satisfaction of the TNA. Concerning the total number of submitted TNAs, 196 projects were submitted and successfully completed (55 of which being a follow-up of the first submission). Several researchers submitted a second (and sometimes a third) project to the same FT-ICR-MS Center, in a total of 55 follow-ups among the 196 TNAs (28% of total accesses) during the whole duration of the project. These researchers clearly expressed an intention to pursue a collaboration with the selected Centers.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

In WP03 - Open Data and e-Infrastructure, the development of specific processing, analysis and mining tools is in progress. The deployment of a FT-ICR open data exchange network, implies that the users have an easy access to the shared data. In particular, TNA users require to have access to the content of their data after the TNA run. As currently no free or open source software is available for the processing and analysis of such data-set, such a program has been developed and is deployed for TNA user.
The WP4 concerns Joint Research activities. Ultra-complex samples (tire oil pyrolysis products, fresh/aged bitumen) were jointly analyzed by direct infusion as well as coupling techniques, i.e. thermal analysis. This cooperation between UHRO, URO and UEF described methods for the ultra-complex organic mixtures with a strong focus to petrochemicals (bio-oils, plastic recycling, etc.). The Liege team described an optimized protocol for MALDI imaging. The French teams (Rouen, Lille) developed a new method for the analysis of polybutadienes and polyisoprenes based on mild chemical depolymerization. Lille team described a high throughput method to identify the species of paleontological bones.
Very exciting new developments have been developed by several sites of the consortium and has been published in open access journals. Among these developments we may emphasize (i) an harmonized cell with an open geometry by the Moscow site which allows longer transient and a better resolution; (ii) a software developed at the site of Liège which extend to MALDI imaging the Kendric and van Krevelen diagrams allowing a better data mining of this complex data; (iii) the implementation of UVPD (Ultraviolet Photodissociation) at the site of Warwick; and finally (iv) the site of Lille developed a genetic algorithm program which allows super-resolution close to the theoretical predicted limits. The 2 XR acquisition at high magnetic field which has been postponed to the last 6 months of the project due to late delivery of the device by the manufacturer has already been the subject of two papers.
The EU_FT-ICR_MS is the first European infrastructure dedicated to afford end users access to ultra-high resolution mass spectrometry. Despite the fact that FT-ICR MS is the most powerful MS offering at least 10 folds higher mass resolving power and mass accuracy on 10 times more complex samples than any other MS technique, the TransNational Access work done for European industrial and regulation agency scientists has shown that the lack of specialist is an obstacle to its wider diffusion. The TNA access provided to European companies and SMEs allowed us to gather a strong network which submitted a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Innovative Training Networks, “European academic, non-academic PhD joint-training in FT-ICR ultra high resolution mass spectrometry of complex samples” for forming, through research-based training, the professional profiles behind tomorrow’s state-of-the-art analysis of complex mixtures by FT-ICR MS in real-world-applications for increasing the competitiveness of European industries and regulation agencies.

FT-ICR MS for physical chemistry experiments at University La Sapinza (Roma)

First End User School of the the EU_FT-ICR_MS network at Joensuu Finland August 2018

Booth of the EU_FT-ICR_MS network at the International Mass Spectrometry Conference (Florence, 2018)

Advertising for the EU_FT-ICR_MS network at TopDown Proteomics Conference (Institut Pasteur, Paris)

12 Tesla FT-ICR MS at University of East Finland University

EUS2 participant in Lille wearing the EU_FT-ICR_MS sweat shirt