MS4PFAS: Application of gas-phase atmospheric pressure ionization sources to assess the wide-scope determination of PFAS in environmental and biological samples
Specific programme: HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
UPV/EHU Partner Status: Coordinator
UPV/EHU PI: Nestor Etxebarria
Project start: 01/09/2024
Project end: 31/08/2026
Brief description:
Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are undoubtedly a worldwide threat due to their high persistence and widespread distribution in the environment, bioaccumulation capacity, and toxic effect on human health through chronic exposure. Despite a lot of research has been conducted to find solutions for the "PFAS problem", critical gaps such as the lack of transparency of manufacturers, the analytical issues to determine PFAS, and the difficulties to find the best way to regulate them and minimize the environmental and human exposure remain the major challenges. Thus, it is important to develop an analytical platform not only to increase the reliability of PFAS determination but also to provide analytical tools to policymakers for a better application of in-force and future regulations.
MS4PFAS aims to propose high-throughput cutting-edge methodologies based on mass spectrometry (MS) to sort out the complexity of the analysis of the vast families of PFAS. The use of novel and/or dual atmospheric pressure ionization techniques for non-targeted liquid chromatography-high-resolution mass spectrometry approaches will increase the range of ionizable substances and will lead to unprecedented advantages to achieve a wide-scope determination of ionic and neutral PFAS in biological and environmental matrices.
The most promising analytical platform will be chosen to propose highly confident identification strategies that will be integrated into a powerful non-targeted workflow to address the determination of known and emerging PFAS. The workflow will be validated and used to extend the knowledge in relevant societal applications such as the monitoring of PFAS in drinking water, updating the development of more efficient water treatment technologies, and in human biofluids (breast milk, plasma, urine), upgrading running epidemiological studies on the links of chronic exposure to PFAS and observed health impairments.