We’re excited to share that our team contributed to a study presented at this year’s MSACL conference in Montreal: “Sensitive and Selective Quantitation of Bile Acids Using Targeted MS2/MS3 on the Stellar MS.”
The research brought together Thermo Fisher Scientific, Arizona State University’s Biodesign Institute, Arome Science and BileOmix Inc. (represented by Alexey Melnik). Together, we developed a new targeted-MS2/MS3 workflow on the Thermo Scientific™ Stellar™ MS platform with some impressive capabilities:
- Femtomole-level sensitivity for detecting low-abundance bile acids
- 5–6 orders of dynamic range, capturing concentrations across wide physiological levels
- Better selectivity for distinguishing isomers and isobars through MS3 fragmentation
- Cross-matrix compatibility validated in both serum and fecal samples
Why Bile Acid Quantitation Matters
Bile acids play crucial roles in metabolism, gut microbiome interactions, and disease processes, but they’re notoriously difficult to measure accurately. Traditional LC-MS/MS methods often struggle to resolve co-eluting isomers, which limits both reproducibility and clinical utility. This study shows how targeted-MS2/MS3 approaches can solve these problems, offering a workflow that’s both reproducible and scalable for biomedical research.
A Collaborative Effort
This work really highlights what happens when industry and academia collaborate effectively. Thermo Fisher brought the advanced Stellar MS platform, ASU Biodesign provided the biological samples and clinical context, and Arome Science contributed to workflow design, validation, and biological interpretation. The result is a method that bridges cutting-edge instrumentation with real-world applications.
Impact for Metabolomics and Clinical Research
At Arome Science, we’re working to make metabolomics more accessible by building workflows that are robust, practical, and clinically meaningful. Being part of this collaboration reinforces that mission and strengthens our connections with leading groups in both industry and academia.
