Our group develops and applies technology and methods in the field of analytical chemistry, i.e. the identification and measurement of compounds in samples. Our focus is on biological samples. Biological samples can be e.g. blood and other biofluids, or tumors, or organs. We primarily apply liquid chromatography and mass spectrometric technology for our work, but have also used other approaches, e.g. nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy.
Our current focus is on applying analytical chemistry to organ models, e.g. organoids. Organoids are laboratory-grown “miniature organs”, that can be used as alternatives to animal experiments. This can have ethical advantages, but also scientific advantages, as organoids can be grown using human cells, and can thus serve as a more relevant test system regarding therapies for human patients. Our work is typically undertaken in multidisciplinary settings, e.g. in collaborations with, research centers and industry partners.
In addition, we also partner with collaborators at Oslo University hospital for clinical research, e.g. diagnostics.
Here are examples of themes of our master projects:
- Studying the effect of environmental pollutants on our body.
Liver and pancreas organoids are exposed to pollutants, e.g. “forever chemicals”. Through the measurement of lipids, peptide hormones, proteins (omics) etc. potential telltale molecules or biomarkers can be unraveled for clinical use, or to establish clear effects. These projects are collaborations with the Faculty of Medicine, and the Norwegian Public Health Institute (Folkehelsa).
- Developing chip technology to study drug properties.
Organoids can be place in microfluidic chips for automated analysis of drug metabolism, a key part of drug discovery. We need young researchers to characterize and use these chips for developing Tomorrow´s drugs. This is a collaboration with SINTEF Digital.
- Clinical chemistry.
Our partners at OUS have hosted several master students, who work with developing tools for diagnostics of newborn infants. The focus is on inborn metabolic diseases. Here students develop new ways of preparing blood for analysis, using high resolution mass spectrometry. The focus is on measuring metabolites in blood, e.g. polar metabolites (metabolomics) and apolar metabolites (lipidomics).
Below are some research papers that master students have made substantial contributions to and are hence authors:
An FDA validated, self-cleaning liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry system for determining small drugs and metabolites in organoid/organ-on-chip medium. Stian Kogler, Gustav Mathingsdal Pedersen, Felipe Martínez-Ramírez, Aleksandra Aizenshtadt, Mathias Busek, Stefan J. K. Krauss, Steven Ray Wilson*, Hanne Røberg-Larsen, Analytical Chemistry, 2024, 10.1021/acs.analchem.4c02246.
“Organ-in-a-column” coupled on-line with liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. Stian Kogler, Aleksandra Aizenshtadt, Sean Harrison, Frøydis Sved Skottvoll, Henriette Engen Berg, Abadpour, Hanne Scholz, Gareth Sullivan, Bernd Thiede, Elsa Lundanes, Inger Lise Bogen, Profile Stefan Krauss, Hanne Røberg-Larsen, Steven Ray Wilson*. Analytical Chemistry, 2022, 94, 50, 17677–17684
Electromembrane extraction and mass spectrometry for liver organoid drug metabolism studies. Froydis Sved Skottvoll, Frederik Hansen, Sean Harrison, Ida Caroline Sneis Boger, Ago Mrsa, Magnus Saad Restan, Matthias Stein, Elsa Lundanes, Stig Pedersen-Bjergaard, Aleksandra Aizenshtadt, Stefan Krauss, Gareth J Sullivan, Inger Lise Bogen, Steven Ray Wilson*. 2021, Analytical Chemistry, 93 (7), 3576-3585.
18.8 Tesla NMR spectroscopy: an effective platform for studying glioblastoma cells´ response to a cancer drug. Ingvild Comfort Hvinden, Henriette Engen Berg, Daniel Sachse, Erlend Skaga, Elsa Lundanes, Cecilie J. Sandberg, Einar O. Vik-Mo, Frode Rise, Steven Ray Wilson*. Journal of Proteome Research, 2019, 18 (5), 2012–2020.
Mass spectrometric detection of 27-hydroxycholesterol in breast cancer exosomes.Roberg-Larsen H, Lund K, Seterdal KE, Solheim S, Vehus T, Solberg N, Krauss S, Lundanes E, Wilson SR*. Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biolology, 2017, 169, 2017, 22-28.
Bridging the polar and hydrophobic metabolome in single-run untargeted liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry dried blood spot metabolomics for clinical purposes. Hanne Bendiksen Skogvold, Elise Mørk Sandås, Anja Østeby, Camilla Løkken, Helge Rootwelt, Per Ola Rønning, Steven Ray Wilson, Katja Benedikte Prestø Elgstøen. Journal of Proteome Research 2021, 20 (8), 4010-4021
Pump-Less, Recirculating Organ-on-Chip (rOoC) Platform to Model the Metabolic Crosstalk between Islets and Liver. Aleksandra Aizenshtadt, Chencheng Wang, Shadab Abadpour, Pedro Duarte Menezes, Ingrid Wilhelmsen, Andrea Dalmao-Fernandez, Justyna Stokowiec, Alexey Golovin, Mads Johnsen, Thomas M. D. Combriat, Hanne Røberg-Larsen, Nikolaj Gadegaard, Hanne Scholz, Mathias Busek, Stefan J. K. Krauss. Adv. Healthcare Mater. 2024, 13, 13