The potential of bioprinting for preparation of nanoparticle-based calibration standards for LA-ICP-ToF-MS quantitative imaging.

This paper discusses the feasibility of a novel strategy based on the combination of bioprinting nano-doping technology and laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma time-of-flight mass spectrometry analysis for the preparation and characterization of gelatin-based multi-element calibration standards suitable for quantitative imaging. To achieve this, lanthanide up-conversion nanoparticles were added to a gelatin matrix to produce the bioprinted calibration standards. The features of this bioprinting approach were compared with manual cryosectioning standard preparation, in terms of throughput, between batch repeatability and elemental signal homogeneity at 5 µm spatial resolution. By using bioprinting, the between batch variability for three independent standards of the same concentration of 89Y (range 0-600 mg/kg) was reduced to 5% compared to up to 27% for cryosectioning. On this basis, the relative standard deviation (RSD) obtained between three independent calibration slopes measured within 1 day also reduced from 16% (using cryosectioning) to 5% (using bioprinting), supporting the use of a single standard preparation replicate for each of the concentrations to achieve good calibration performance using bioprinting. This helped reduce the analysis time by approximately 3-fold. With cryosectioning each standard was prepared and sectioned individually, whereas using bio-printing it was possible to have up to six different standards printed simultaneously, reducing the preparation time from approximately 2 h to under 20 min (by approximately 6-fold). The bio-printed calibration standards were found stable for a period of 2 months when stored at ambient temperature and in the dark.

Detection of transgenerational barium dual-isotope marks in salmon otoliths by means of LA-ICP-MS.

The present study evaluates the use of an individual-specific transgenerational barium dual-isotope procedure and its application to salmon specimens from the Sella River (Asturias, Spain). For such a purpose, the use of laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) in combination with multiple linear regression for the determination of the isotopic mark in the otoliths of the specimens is presented. In this sense, a solution in which two barium-enriched isotopes ((137)Ba and (135)Ba) were mixed at a molar ratio of ca. 1:3 (N Ba137/N Ba135) was administered to eight returning females caught during the spawning period. After injection, these females, as well as their offspring, were reared in a governmental hatchery located in the council of Cangas de Onís (Asturias, Spain). For comparison purposes, as well as for a time-monitoring control, egg and larva data obtained by solution analysis ICP-MS are also given. Otoliths (9-month-old juveniles) of marked offspring were analysed by LA-ICP-MS demonstrating a 100 % marking efficacy of this methodology. The capabilities of the molar fraction approach for 2D imaging of fish otoliths are also addressed.

Individual-specific transgenerational marking of fish populations based on a barium dual-isotope procedure.

The present study focuses on the development and evaluation of an individual-specific transgenerational marking procedure using two enriched barium isotopes, (135)Ba and (137)Ba, mixed at a given and selectable molar ratio. The method is based on the deconvolution of the isotope patterns found in the sample into four molar contribution factors: natural xenon (Xe nat), natural barium (Ba nat), Ba135, and Ba137. The ratio of molar contributions between Ba137 and Ba135 is constant and independent of the contribution of natural barium in the sample. This procedure was tested in brown trout ( Salmo trutta ) kept in captivity. Trout were injected with three different Ba137/Ba135 isotopic signatures ca. 7 months and 7 days before spawning to compare the efficiency of the marking procedure at long and short term, respectively. The barium isotopic profiles were measured in the offspring by means of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Each of the three different isotopic signatures was unequivocally identified in the offspring in both whole eggs and larvae. For 9 month old offspring, the characteristic barium isotope signatures could also be detected in the otoliths even in the presence of a high and variable amount of barium of natural isotope abundance. In conclusion, it can be stated that the proposed dual-isotope marking is inheritable and can be detected after both long-term and short-term marking. Furthermore, the dual-isotope marking can be made individual-specific, so that it allows identification of offspring from a single individual or a group of individuals within a given fish group.