Two Decades of Clinical Mass Spectrometry Progress: From Neonatal Screening to Protein Biomarkers
This retrospective review traces the evolution of mass spectrometry in clinical laboratories from its historical confinement to neonatal screening and steroid analysis to its current versatility across biomarker detection, protein measurement, therapeutic drug monitoring, and high-throughput automation. Technological advances have made MS more powerful and user-friendly, expanding the technique's potential to revolutionise clinical testing. The review highlights key contributions that have shaped the field over the past two decades.
The original study
Mass spectrometry in the clinical laboratory. A short journey through the contribution to the scientific literature by
- Authors
- Rankin-Turner S, Heaney LM
- Journal
- Clinical chemistry and laboratory medicine
- Type
- Review, Journal Article
- PMID
- 36282951
Original abstract
Mass spectrometry (MS) has been a gold standard in the clinical laboratory for decades. Although historically refined to limited areas of study such as neonatal screening and steroid analysis, technological advancements in the field have resulted in MS becoming more powerful, versatile, and user-friendly than ever before. As such, the potential for the technique in clinical chemistry has exploded. The past two decades have seen advancements in biomarker detection for disease diagnostics, new methods for protein measurement, improved methodologies for reliable therapeutic drug monitoring, and novel technologies for automation and high throughput. Throughout this time, Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine has embraced the rapidly developing field of mass spectrometry, endeavoring to highlight the latest techniques and applications that have the potential to revolutionize clinical testing. This mini review will highlight a selection of these critical contributions to the field.