{"title":"Toward diagnostically relevant isotope-ratio biomarkers: what does MC-ICP-MS still need for standardized measurements?","authors":"Daniel Arias Ramirez, Björn Meermann","doi":"10.1007/s00216-026-06517-y","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-026-06517-y","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Stable isotope-ratio analysis by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) with a multi-collector (MC-ICP-MS) is increasingly used in life sciences, offering mechanistic insight and potential diagnostic specificity. This review asks the following: What limits biomedical isotope-ratio work, and what steps will make results comparable and fit for biomedical interpretation? Our target audience includes analytical chemists, MC-ICP-MS practitioners, liquid chromatography (LC) and capillary electrophoresis (CE) users, metrology and assurance/quality control specialists, and biomedical researchers adopting isotope-ratio workflows. We map the field from bulk delta (δ) values to chemical speciation, species-specific isotope ratios, and spatially resolved readouts. Specific choices in sampling, pre-analytics, separation, sample introduction, and instrument setup are linked to the main sources of bias and to the limits of precision and traceability. Recent progress is synthesized across automated clean-up, LC/ICP-MS and CE/ICP-MS workflows, transient-signal handling, and species-specific isotope dilution with enriched spikes. The review provides practical guidance on baseline correction, peak integration, mass-bias correction, scale realization, and uncertainty budgets. Across studies, the bottlenecks are species instability and interconversion, matrix and space-charge effects, sample-spike mismatch, spectral interferences, lack of species-specific reference materials, and inconsistent operating procedures. We close with an outlook that prioritizes (i) automation and transient-signal processing, (ii) matrix-matched species-specific reference materials, (iii) instrument advances for interference control and coupling efficiency, and (iv) harmonized data-processing standard operating procedures. Together, these steps can enable reproducible multi-site biomedical isotope-ratio workflows and support their translation towards clinical applicability by clarifying where MC-ICP-MS already adds value and where research is still needed.</p>","PeriodicalId":462,"journal":{"name":"Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147809354","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Fuyuan Chen, Baojian Zhang, Yuntong Wang, Hao Peng, Yu Wang, Zhixiong Song, Meina Chen, Xuan Yang, Peng Liang, Yue Qu, Bei Li
{"title":"High-efficiency generation of stably transduced monoclonal cell lines via a laser-induced jetting microfluidic platform.","authors":"Fuyuan Chen, Baojian Zhang, Yuntong Wang, Hao Peng, Yu Wang, Zhixiong Song, Meina Chen, Xuan Yang, Peng Liang, Yue Qu, Bei Li","doi":"10.1007/s00216-026-06508-z","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-026-06508-z","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The establishment of monoclonal, stably transduced cell lines is a critical step in functional genomics and drug discovery. However, conventional methods are often time-consuming, labor-intensive, and prone to compromising cell viability. Here, we present a microfluidic single-cell sorting system based on laser-induced jetting (LIJet) that significantly improves the efficiency and quality of stable cell line generation. This system integrates a light-responsive substrate with metal coating and a PDMS microfluidic chip featuring an array of microwells, enabling single-cell capture, identification, and non-contact precision release. A 532 nm nanosecond pulsed laser is used to generate localized microjets, which accurately eject target cells from the microwells. In addition to achieving a 100% sorting success rate and maintaining over 95.3% post-sorting cell viability, the system supports long-term on-chip culture and viral transduction with full real-time monitoring. We demonstrated the platform's functionality by performing on-chip ZsGreen lentiviral transduction of human lung adenocarcinoma PC9 cells, followed by fluorescence-based single-cell selection, ultimately establishing monoclonal cell lines with stable transgene expression. This platform offers notable advantages in low-damage manipulation, dynamic monitoring, and functional perturbation, providing a robust and efficient solution for the construction of stably transduced cell lines, gene function screening, and phenotypic analysis across a variety of biomedical applications.</p>","PeriodicalId":462,"journal":{"name":"Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147809325","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Barbara Matić, Lieby Zborovsky, Min Qiu, Katrin Jana Frank, Kıvanç Görgülü, Nicole Strittmatter
{"title":"Systematic assessment of different wash solvents for the analysis of small molecule metabolites using mass spectrometry imaging.","authors":"Barbara Matić, Lieby Zborovsky, Min Qiu, Katrin Jana Frank, Kıvanç Görgülü, Nicole Strittmatter","doi":"10.1007/s00216-026-06534-x","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-026-06534-x","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Wash protocols are a simple, commonly used approach to enhance the detectability of low-abundant or poorly ionisable compounds in mass spectrometry imaging (MSI). The washing procedures aim to enhance analyte ionisation by removing interfering metabolites that affect the ionisation efficiency and detection of the target metabolites. However, despite the widespread use of wash protocols in MSI, their impact on small molecule metabolites (SMM) has not been systematically evaluated. In this study, 12 different aqueous and organic wash solvents were investigated to assess their impact on the signal intensities of SMMs in tumour tissue using desorption electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry imaging (DESI-MSI). The added wash steps proved to be a promising tool for increasing detection sensitivity for targeted metabolites, with >90% of analytes investigated here showing increased sensitivity following the optimum wash solvent step. While chloroform was found most efficient in removing lipids overall, the most versatile solvent to significantly enhance the detection of polar and semi-polar metabolites, including amino acids, nucleic acid compounds, sugars, and organic acids, was found to be ethyl acetate. In contrast, water-based washes enhanced fatty acids and lipids while removing hydrophilic metabolites. This study emphasises the importance of adjusting pretreatment protocols to the molecular class of interest and provides a targeted guide for increasing ion detection sensitivity across a broad range of metabolites.</p>","PeriodicalId":462,"journal":{"name":"Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147809315","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Bruce P-N Yuen, Kin-Sing Wong, Venus Y-C Lin, Hiu Wing Cheung, Emmie N-M Ho, Wing-Tak Wong
{"title":"Direct LC-HRMS/MS characterisation and RT-qPCR detection for potential mRNA-based doping agent.","authors":"Bruce P-N Yuen, Kin-Sing Wong, Venus Y-C Lin, Hiu Wing Cheung, Emmie N-M Ho, Wing-Tak Wong","doi":"10.1007/s00216-026-06513-2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-026-06513-2","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) therapeutics offer unprecedented potential for in vivo protein expression but raise emerging risks of misuse for gene doping. We investigated an online-available product purported to be codon-optimised, 5-methoxyuridine-substituted human erythropoietin (EPO) mRNA and developed a corresponding detection assay for equine anti-doping. Product identity was verified using a mass spectrometry (MS)-based bottom-up workflow comprising RNase 4 digestion, liquid chromatography-high-resolution tandem MS analysis, and automated sequence mapping against an mRNA database of potential doping genes. This workflow enabled direct detection of base modifications and achieved mean sequence coverage above 74%, verifying the mRNA sequence and its chemical composition. Method optimisation shows that partial RNase 4 digestion with a 10-min incubation time produced more consistent coverage by generating longer, informative oligoribonucleotides. The enhanced consistency would be advantageous for single-analysis scenarios typical of doping investigations. Building on the verified product identity, we developed a corresponding reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) assay for equine plasma. We explored the simple use of naked mRNA for matrix spiking as a reference material for doping control analysis. The method was validated with a limit of detection at 1250 copies/mL of EPO mRNA in equine plasma. In addition to EPO mRNA, the combined MS and RT-qPCR approach provides a practical framework that can be extended for surveillance of emerging mRNA-based agents in sport.</p>","PeriodicalId":462,"journal":{"name":"Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147809255","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Evaluation of reagents for suspension-assisted total reflection X-ray fluorescence element analysis in biomedical samples.","authors":"Sebastian Hauser, Marit Veit, Kerstin Leopold","doi":"10.1007/s00216-026-06505-2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-026-06505-2","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>In biomedical research, it is essential to be able to precisely and reliably quantify trace and microelements in complex biological matrices in order to identify deficiencies and understand disease mechanisms. Analytical methods that are sensitive, robust, and environmentally friendly are preferable. Suspension-assisted total reflection X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (SA-TXRF) is a simple to perform, multielement analytical method that can quantify trace elements in suspensions containing minute sample amounts. In this work, a systematic study comparing five different suspension reagents, namely concentrated and diluted nitric acid, Triton X-100, Triton X-114, and ultrapure water, for SA-TXRF analysis of trace and microelements in three biological reference materials (NIST 1577c, NIST 1486, and ERM-BB186) is presented. The analytical performance is compared in terms of trueness, precision, and sensitivity, and the resulting SA-TXRF methods were assessed for greenness using the Analytical Greenness Metric for Sample Preparation (AGREEprep). As a result, water is recommended as suspension reagent for soft biological material, while for hard biological material, i.e., bone meal, best results were achieved using the surfactant Triton X-114. All of the presented SA-TXRF methods demonstrate improved greenness compared to the standard method (EPA Method 3052), which involves sample preparation by microwave-assisted digestion.</p>","PeriodicalId":462,"journal":{"name":"Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-04-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147758990","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Karlo Jambrosic, Tin Zupanovic, Ivona Krizman-Matasic, Senka Terzic, Marijan Ahel, Ivan Senta
{"title":"Advancing analytical methodologies for the determination of lifestyle and dietary biomarkers in municipal wastewater.","authors":"Karlo Jambrosic, Tin Zupanovic, Ivona Krizman-Matasic, Senka Terzic, Marijan Ahel, Ivan Senta","doi":"10.1007/s00216-026-06495-1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-026-06495-1","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) is increasingly used to assess the consumption of illicit drugs and other lifestyle chemicals, while its potential for evaluating population dietary habits has been scarcely investigated. In this study, a multi-residue analytical method was developed to determine more than 40 lifestyle and dietary biomarkers in raw municipal wastewater. In addition to biomarkers commonly included in WBE studies, this method incorporates several food biomarkers not previously analysed in this context. The target biomarkers were analysed using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Optimal separation was achieved on an ACQUITY UPLC HSS T3 column using gradient elution with 0.1% acetic acid and acetonitrile, while multiple reaction monitoring mode was used for detection and quantification of the target compounds. Sample preparation involved solid-phase extraction (SPE) on hydrophilic-lipophilic cartridges for biomarkers present at lower concentrations in wastewater (mainly food biomarkers), while direct injection of diluted wastewater samples was used for other analytes, including alcohol and tobacco/nicotine biomarkers, artificial sweeteners, antidiabetic metformin, certain vitamins, and a few other food biomarkers. The method validation parameters, including SPE recovery and accuracy, were acceptable in most cases, and the method sensitivity was sufficient to enable reliable determination of the target biomarkers in real samples. Regarding stability in wastewater during sample collection and storage, most biomarkers remained stable at 4 °C for 24 h, but moderate to high loss of some analytes occurred during the freeze-thaw cycle. The method's applicability was verified using 24-h wastewater samples from four Croatian cities, confirming its suitability for WBE.</p>","PeriodicalId":462,"journal":{"name":"Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-04-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147809147","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Propylsulfonic acid-bonded silica stationary phase through mercapto oxidation for chromatographic separation of rare earth elements.","authors":"Yuqing Wei, Chao Zhong, Hongwei Zhao, Qifang He, Bo Zhang, Hongdeng Qiu","doi":"10.1007/s00216-026-06510-5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-026-06510-5","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The selective separation and precise analysis of rare earth elements (REEs) in impurity-laden matrices constitute persistent challenges. Among available separation techniques, ion-exchange chromatography has gained prominence as an effective approach for REE purification. However, the quest for a high-performance stationary phase preparation method continues to be a focal point. Herein, a propylsulfonic acid-functionalized stationary phase (Sil-SH-SCX) was developed through γ-mercaptopropyl trimethoxysilane (MPTS) grafting followed by oxidation. The Sil-SH-SCX demonstrated excellent chromatographic performance, achieving efficient separation of REEs with resolution ranging from 4.2 to 12.6 for adjacent lanthanides. Besides, the Sil-SH-SCX column displayed high repeatability (RSD < 0.99%, n = 10) and stability (RSD < 1.5%, n = 30). Taking advantage of its excellent separation performance, Sil-SH-SCX was successfully applied for the sensitive determination of REEs with excellent linearity (R<sup>2</sup> = 0.996-0.999, 1-500 mg L<sup>-1</sup>). This work provided an insight into the design of a chromatography stationary phase and expanded its potential application in REE analysis and purification.</p>","PeriodicalId":462,"journal":{"name":"Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-04-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147759100","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Reflection-enhanced LIF for improved label-free classification of blood inflammation with complementary LIBS validation.","authors":"Rania M Abdelazeem, Z Abdel-Salam, M Abdel-Harith","doi":"10.1007/s00216-026-06502-5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-026-06502-5","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This study introduces a reflection-enhanced laser-induced fluorescence (RELIF) technique for label-free classification of inflammation severity across three levels in blood serum. RELIF overcomes key limitations of conventional laser-induced fluorescence (LIF), particularly low fluorescence sensitivity and the prozone effect, which are frequently encountered in traditional immunoassays. In RELIF, a cuvette with a reflective surface facing the incident laser beam is used to amplify the diode-laser-pumped fluorescence signal by a factor substantially greater than in standard LIF. In parallel, complementary laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) measurements were performed on dried serum samples using a Q-switched Nd:YAG laser to verify elemental differences among the inflammation classes. RELIF delivered enhanced spectral resolution and sensitivity, yielding approximately 1.30× to 1.53× higher fluorescence signals than conventional LIF. While standard LIF showed reduced performance, especially for samples with severe inflammation, RELIF clearly distinguished all inflammation classes, capturing subtle spectral variations and achieving higher signal-to-noise ratios. Notably, RELIF correctly identified severe inflammation as the class with the weakest fluorescence signal, thereby avoiding the false negatives associated with the prozone phenomenon without the need for sample dilution. LIBS analysis further supported class separation through differences in Ca atomic and CN molecular emissions. Multivariate analysis using partial least squares regression (PLSR) and partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) demonstrated high predictive accuracy and robust discrimination. Model performance was further assessed using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves; the RELIF-based model outperformed LIF, achieving an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.94 compared with 0.84 for LIF, indicating strong classification performance. Overall, the combined RELIF-LIBS strategy offers a rapid, cost-effective, and non-destructive tool for inflammation classification.</p>","PeriodicalId":462,"journal":{"name":"Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-04-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147759097","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Absorbance enhancement in the infrared spectra of CH<sub>4</sub>/CO<sub>2</sub> gas mixtures: quantitative analysis of binary gas diffusion.","authors":"Valerio Loianno","doi":"10.1007/s00216-026-06538-7","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-026-06538-7","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Pressure broadening is commonly observed in the infrared spectrum of gases in the presence of a foreign species. This phenomenon produces a deviation from the Bouguer-Beer-Lambert (BBL) law preventing quantitative analysis. The aim of the present study is to measure its effect over the IR spectra of CH<sub>4</sub>/CO<sub>2</sub> binary gas mixtures at ambient temperature up to 10 bar in the mid and near-infrared frequency ranges and use the enhanced IR signals to quantify the gas pair interdiffusion. The composition is accurately tuned with calibrated thermal mass flow controllers. The infrared absorbance of methane in the range [3025, 3300] cm<sup>-1</sup> and of carbon dioxide at 3626 cm<sup>-1</sup> is correlated with the molar concentration of each component to elucidate the effect of pressure and composition. The data are described with polynomial functions, and the coefficients' dependence on the gas composition is unveiled. We consider that collision-induced absorption and local field effects produce the absorbance enhancement and show how this phenomenon can be exploited in the analytical technique. The binary gas diffusion of CH<sub>4</sub>/CO<sub>2</sub> at ~1 bar and 298.45 or 308.15 K is successfully investigated with the same IR signals within a closed system: for methane, the absorbance is appropriately corrected accounting for equimolar counter diffusion as a constraint; for carbon dioxide, the absorbance varies linearly with the concentration so that no correction is needed. Homonuclear foreign species transparent to IR radiation can also be indirectly analyzed if the broadening effect is appropriately described, as reported in this article.</p>","PeriodicalId":462,"journal":{"name":"Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-04-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147758993","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Toon Verdonck, Roger Mora de la Serna, Patrick Augustijns, Rik Gijsbers, Deirdre Cabooter
{"title":"A hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method for the quantification of intracellular cystine and its application in cystinosis research.","authors":"Toon Verdonck, Roger Mora de la Serna, Patrick Augustijns, Rik Gijsbers, Deirdre Cabooter","doi":"10.1007/s00216-026-06526-x","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-026-06526-x","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Cystinosis is a rare, lysosomal storage disorder caused by mutations in the CTNS gene encoding the lysosomal cystine transporter, resulting in lysosomal cystine accumulation, the phenotypic hallmark of cystinosis, and progressive cellular dysfunction. Accurate quantification of cystine levels is therefore essential for assessing lysosomal transport deficiency and treatment response. In vitro cell models provide a controlled platform to investigate disease mechanisms and to evaluate emerging therapeutic strategies. To determine intracellular cystine concentrations in these models, adequate sample preparation, storage, and highly sensitive analytical methods are essential. In this work, a rapid hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HILIC-MS/MS) method was developed for the direct determination of cystine in cellular extracts. Use of a PEEK-lined HILIC-Z column proved essential to minimize metal-induced peak tailing and improve chromatographic performance. The total run time of 5 min enabled high-throughput analysis, facilitating efficient screening of novel therapeutic approaches in cellular systems. Validation demonstrated excellent linearity (R<sup>2</sup> ≥ 0.9986) and a lower limit of quantification (LLOQ) of 12.5 nM, representing a > 8-fold improvement over reported reversed-phase LC methods. Addition of N-ethylmaleimide (NEM) prior to cell lysis effectively limited cysteine oxidation and maintained sample stability at 4 °C. Applicability was demonstrated in an isogenic laboratory HEK293T cell model, where CTNS-knockout (KO) cells exhibited significantly elevated intracellular cystine levels compared to wild-type (WT) cells. As additional controls, elevated levels were successfully restored following cysteamine treatment or lentiviral-vector (LV)-mediated CTNS protein re-expression. The developed method hence provides a sensitive and reliable analytical platform for in vitro evaluation of novel therapeutic strategies in cystinosis research.</p>","PeriodicalId":462,"journal":{"name":"Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-04-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147758864","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}