Impactful Separations in Denver

It is nearly time for the 52nd International Symposium on High Performance Liquid Phase Separations and Related Techniques – with five busy days full of impactful separation science ahead!

The Analytical Scientist team is here with our top picks to help you find your way through the packed schedule.

The theme for this year? (Hint: I’ve already written the word impactful twice.

“Separation science doesn’t always get the recognition it deserves, especially given the dramatic impact it has on society – from understanding human biology and developing new medicines, to catching criminals and protecting the environment. There’s also a misconception that a meeting of separation scientists has to either be for the experts to network and discuss the niche technical details or a higher-level overview more suited to beginners,” says program chair Susan Olesik. “Our aim with this year’s HPLC meeting is to tackle both of these issues by highlighting the impact of separation science while catering to both experts and interested non-experts.”

HPLC 2024 and the High Mile City await… 

Enjoy the show!

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Our top picks for…

Day 1 – July 21st

 

For the official HPLC 2024 kick off, Steven Soper, Foundation Distinguished Professor in Chemistry at the University of Kansas and Janusz Pawliszyn, Professor in Department of Chemistry, at the University of Waterloo take the stage to welcome everyone with their plenary talks. 

Soper will be discussing nanochip electrophoresis using plastic-based nano-columns for the detection and identification of single molecules and particles, followed by Pawliszyn’s talk on solid phase microextraction (SPME) probes as a green sample preparation alternative for HPLC. 

“SPME is very attractive as a ‘green’ and sustainable tool; it eliminates the use of solvents, it consumes few materials, it uses little energy, it can be used multiple times in high throughput modes, and it facilitates on-site and in-vivo investigation,” argued Pawliszyn last year.

Both presentations will take place in room Colorado F-J. 

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Day 2 – July 22nd

 

If you are an early bird and in the mood to learn more about oligonucleotide therapeutics, then Claus Rentel’s (Vice President, Analytical Development and Quality Control at Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.) plenary talk is for you – starting at 8:40 am in room Colorado F-J. Alexandra Ros, Professor, School of Molecular Sciences at Arizona State University will follow with her plenary talk on high performance protein crystallography and dielectrophoresis. 

The afternoon is also full of interesting topics and talks – with James Grinias discussing miniaturized LC columns and instruments (1:30–2 pm, room Denver 1-3).

Earlier this year, Grinias said: “I am hopeful that compact separations-based platforms will eventually play a role in routine clinical diagnostics. Most LC-based clinical assays rely upon third-party testing services conducted in off-site laboratories. As the performance of miniaturized LC systems continues to improve, I think that these tools can eventually be used to help deliver real-time results in clinical settings.

Susan Olesik will be speaking about protein quantitation with enhanced fluidity liquid chromatography (5:20-5:40 pm, Colorado G-J).

This year’s show is all about impact, but how is chromatography making a difference in the world? Well, that’s what the Tube Competition (6:30 pm, Colorado G-J) is aiming to showcase. Ten contestants will present their research in an artistic, creative and scientific way, celebrating separation science – and its impact.

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Day 3 – July 23rd

Are you an -omics enthusiast? Luckily, today is filled with multiple talks on separation technologies for -omics analyses. Make sure you attend the “LC & CE for Proteomics” session, where John Yates will be discussing how a single mutation in CFTR causes cystic fibrosis (8:30–9 am, Denver 4-6). Following, Lucie Novakova (11-12:30 am, Denver 4-6) invites Michael Laemmerhofer, Niraj Panday, Ekaterina Tsarenko and Krishnamoorthy Kuppannan to provide their insight in lipidomics and metabolomics research with chromatography. 

In last year’s Power List, Kelly Zhang said: “There is a lack of analytical technologies that can holistically characterize complex samples. Different technologies and sample preparations are required to characterize one sample, but each technology can only provide a piece of the information, and often the original sample gets disrupted or altered during sample preparation and/or the process of analysis. This is especially challenging when dealing with complex drug modalities.”

This year, she is the chair of “LC IC-MS of complex mixtures” session, where experts will be discussing -omics progress and new technologies.

Don’t forget to check the poster exhibition in room Colorado A-F, running 10-11 am and 3-4:30 pm!

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Day 4 – July 24th

 

“SFC has gone through so many ups and downs in its long history, and now is the time for perseverance in the SFC community to ensure it takes a sustainable upwards trajectory,” according to Stefan Bieber and Thomas Letzel. If you’re curious about the progress of the field, you should definitely check out the morning session on SFC (8:30-10 am, Denver 1-3) – chaired byLarry Miller – with talks on SFC applications and advancement in food analysis, drug development and instrumentation. 

Later, Bruce McCord, Chun Sing Lai, Amanda Bayless and Makenzie Witzel get together to explore the latest separation technology for forensic analysis – and find out how artificial intelligence can enhance analysis of LC-MS chromatograms and improve doping control in horse racing… 

Elia Psillakis also welcomes environmental analysis experts Emanuela Gionfriddo, Derick Lucas, Stephanie Schuster and Alexander Kaplitz to discuss the latest research on sustainable microextraction techniques, PFAS monitoring, pesticide analysis and plastic waste characterization (4:30-6 pm, Colorado G-J).

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Day 5 – July 25th

 

And finally, the closing award ceremony (1:30-4:05 pm, Colorado F-J)! 

Here, I need to add a spoiler alert… 

The Uwe D. Neue Award prize was created to recognize scientists who have made and continue to make significant contributions to the field of separation science, in honor of late Dr Uwe D. Neue. This year’s winner is Miroslav Janco – for his work on Advanced Polymer Chromatography (APC). 

Lucie Nováková, Kevin Schug, and John Langley will also be honored with the 2024 Silver Jubilee Medal – which was established in 1982 to mark the 25th anniversary of The Chromatographic Society to recognize up-and-coming separation scientists with exceptional contributions to a particular area of separation science. 

Our warmest congratulations to all the winners!

For more details, you can access the full program here.

^{Full Denver skyline by Flickr,CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons}