Welcome to Baltimore – and to ASMS 2025!
Over the next couple of days, The Analytical Scientist is proud to be your go-to reference in navigating your way through the many excellent presentations and symposia the conference has to offer. We’ll be sharing our top picks, as well as a suggestion or two on some ways to help maximize your time in Baltimore.
So without further delay, here are our top picks for day one. We hope you enjoy the show!
Henry Thomas, Deputy Editor
Today’s Must See
8:30–10:30 am (Room 314-317): MOD am: Metabolomics and Lipidomics: New Technologies and Applications (Gary Siuzdak)
Kicking off proceedings, Scripps’ Gary Siuzdak leads a series of presentations exploring the newest trends and approaches within metabolomic and lipidomic studies. We spoke to him earlier this year about perhaps Scripps’ most acclaimed metabolomics venture – XCMS-METLIN – described simply as “the culmination of a tremendous team effort.”
Siuzdak has also found himself at the center of a heated debate within the metabolomics community, sparked by his lab’s research on the impact of in-source fragmentation on metabolomics datasets. That work, which we covered last year in “A Figment of Our Fragmentation?”, raised fundamental questions about the size and significance of the so-called “dark metabolome.”
Just today, we published an interview with Pieter Dorrestein and Yasin El Abiead, who earlier this year released a critical response to Siuzdak’s paper. And coming up this Thursday, we’ll be publishing Siuzdak and Martin Giera’s reply – so stay tuned!
2:30–4:40 pm (Room 314-317): MOD pm: Fundamentals: Ionization Methods (Sarah Trimpin)
Sarah Trimpin chairs an afternoon session addressing recent advances in ionization methods with presentations on topics such as the electronic structure of uranium-containing molecules, a novel ionization technique for pesticide detection, and a laser sampler for molecular characterization in cancer research.
When we sat down with Sarah back in 2016, she highlighted her emphasis on promoting boldness in her students’ research. “As a community, we need to invest more in the education of our students; they need to be free enough – financially and emotionally – to do the crazy stuff. Many discoveries have been made by students who didn’t follow the ‘script.’ If we can encourage students (and their mentors) to take chances, we will absolutely make more progress in science.”
4:45–5:30 pm: Presentation of Al Yergey MS Scientist Awards and Award Lecture by Jack Henion for John B. Fenn Distinguished Contribution in Mass Spectrometry Award (Joseph Loo)
ASMS President Joseph Loo rounds off day one by presenting the John B Fenn Distinguished Contribution Award to Jack Henion for his “singular, focused achievement in the conception, development, and application of pneumatically assisted electrospray ionization.”
We spoke with Loo recently to get his take on recent disruptions to US science as a result of mass cuts and layoffs. While describing the current situation as that of “pure chaos,” Loo hopes that scientists – specifically mass spectrometrists – will stand together amidst the adversity and continue to do what they do best.
“We all need to be resilient and focus on things that we can control, like the experiments in the lab. Consider our short term goals with the long range impact they could have. Marvel at the new discoveries we make. Think about the significance of the new knowledge gained, and then develop a plan of attack to build on the next big result. To quote Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool: “Maximum Effort!””
Tomorrow’s Planner
10:10-10:30am (Ballroom III): What do Volcanic Eruptions and Urban Fires Have in Common? Ash Clouds filled with BPCAs – Forensic Analysis by LC/QTOF-MS (Michael Thurman, Imma Ferrer and James Pyke)
12:00–1:00 pm (Poster-Exhibit Hall): Networking Session – Hispanics and Latinx in MS (Adriana Zardini Buzatto, Rafael Montenegro Burke)
4:45–5:30 pm (Hall AB): Biemann Medal Lecture (Livia Eberlin) + Research Awards Presentation (Joseph Loo)
Thought of the Day
“ASMS recognizes the importance of fostering an environment where all members feel valued, heard and supported. We are committed to ensuring that every member – regardless of background or experience – has the opportunity to engage fully in our shared scientific pursuits.”
“We believe that mass spectrometry is an important area of not only analytical science, but the global field of science. Science doesn’t happen in a vacuum (except mass spectrometry science, of course).” - Joseph Loo
Aprés-Sci
Sometimes, the best way to wind down is by doing something a little off-the-wall. The Horse You Came In On Saloon in Fell’s Point – colloquially referred to as “The Horse” by locals – is a hidden gem of a bar where one can play vintage arcade games, listen to live music or enjoy a round or two of junkyard-inspired minigolf.
It’s also theorized that the bar was the last place the famous poet Edgar Allan Poe was sighted before his death; historians may argue otherwise, but I think the myth adds to the bar’s charm nonetheless.
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