Wojciech Gabryelski
Associate Professor
College of Computational, Mathematical and Physical Sciences, Department of Chemistry
Research Areas
- Water Analysis
- Environmental Pollution
- Environmental Mass Spectroscopy
- Environmental Chemistry
- Differential Iron Mobility Spectroscopy
- Biological Mass Spectroscopy
- Analytical Chemistry
Education
- B.Sc. (1986) - Gdansk Institute of Technology (Gdansk, Poland) Chemistry and Chemical Engineering
- M.Sc. (1986) - Gdansk Institute of Technology (Gdansk, Poland) Analytical Chemistry
- Ph.D. (2000) - University of Alberta (Edmonton, Alberta) Mass Spectrometry
- Appointed to faculty of the University of Guelph Department of Chemistry in August 2004
- Currently a member of the American Society of Mass Spectrometry
Research
Our research in the area of analytical mass spectrometry focuses on the development and application of new, effective, and convenient techniques for characterization of chemical components of complex mixtures typically found in environmental and biological samples. Our strategy for improving the existing analytical methods is coupling mass spectrometry with nano-flow Ultra-high Performance Liquid Chromatography (UPLC) (pictured here) and High Field Asymmetric Waveform Ion Mobility Spectrometry (FAIMS).
Mass spectrometry is an analytical technique that is used to quantify known materials, identify unknown compounds, and elucidate structural and physical properties of molecules. Scientists use mass spectrometry to weigh molecules. Molecules are extremely small and cannot be weighed in the traditional sense on a scale. To give you an estimate of the size of a molecule of water, it would take approximately 60,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 water molecules to fill a tablespoon. We refer to the weight of a molecule as its mass which can be measured “electronically” by using a mass spectrometer. Mass spectrometers are used in many laboratories throughout the world to analyze thousands of compounds such as those present in our bodies, our environment, our medicines, manufactured materials, foods, poisons, and criminal evidence. Mass spectrometry is associated with very high speed, sensitivity, and specificity. This means that compounds of interest can rapidly be identified at very low concentrations in chemically complex mixtures. Mass spectrometry provides valuable information to a wide range of professionals including chemists, biologists, physicians, and astronomers.
The nano-flow UPLC is a recently developed liquid separation technique which provides extremely high separation efficiency. The FAIMS, on the other hand, is a gas-phase separation method which is capable of separating ions on the basis of how the ions move in the presence of an alternating electrical field. By placing a FAIMS device at the front end of a mass spectrometer, the selectivity, sensitivity and available spectral information can be increased dramatically. In some instances, the improvement is so significant that the FAIMS system has been called the “Hubble Telescope” of mass spectrometry. In our research, we have a tremendous opportunity to use these “state-of-art” separation techniques with combination of Quadrupole Time of Flight (QTOF) and Quadrupole Ion Trap (QIT) mass spectrometry to investigate the gas-phase chemistry of a wide range of environmental pollutants and intriguing biomarkers. The information from such fundamental studies is critical for developing new mass spectrometry methods for rapid, sensitive, and comprehensive characterization of new classes of contaminants in drinking water and biomarkers in biological samples.
Current Group Members
Daniel Beach
Jadwiga Lyczko
Past Group Members
Alex Michaelides, Undergraduate Research, Summer 2005
Michael Baker, Undergraduate Research, Summer 2006
Lisa Rabson, M.Sc. 2009
Natalia Kulikova, M.Sc. 2009
Sample Publications
22. Beach, D. G., Gabryelski, W. “Revisiting the Reactivity Uracil During Collision Induced Dissociation: Tautomerism and Charge Directed Processes.” J. Am. Soc. Mass Spectrom. 2012, 23, 858-868.
21. Witham, A. A., Beach, D. G., Gabryelski, W., Manderville, R. A. “Hydroxyl Radical-Induced Oxidation of a Phenolic C-Linked-2’-Deoxyguanosine Adduct Yields a Reactive Catechol” Chem. Res. Toxicol. 2012, 25, 315-325.
20. Beach, D. G., Gabryelski, W. „Non-Target Analysis of Urine by Electrospray Ionization – High Field Asymmetric Waveform Ion Mobility – Tandem Mass Spectrometry (ESI-FAIMS-MS/MS).” Anal. Chem. 2011, 83, 9170-9113.
19. Sagoo, S., Beach, D. G., Manderville, R. A., Gabryelski, W. “Tautomerization in Gas Phase Ion Chemistry of Isomeric C-8 Deoxyguanosine Adducts From Phenol-Induced DNA Damage.” J. Mass Spectrom. 2011, 46, 41-49.
18. Omumi, A., Beach, D. G., Baker, M., Gabryelski, W., Manderville, R. A. “Post-Synthetic Guanine Arylation of DNA by Suzuki-Miyaura Cross-Coupling.” J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2011, 133, 42-50. (Cover Article, January 12)
17. Kulikov, N., Baker, M., Gabryelski W. “Collision Induced Dissociation of Protonated N-Nitrosodimethylamine by Ion Trap Mass Spectrometry: Ultimate Carcinogens in Gas Phase” Int. J. Mass Spectrom. 2009, 288, 75-83.
16. Pfohl-Leszkowicz, A., Gabryelski, W., Manderville, R. A. “Formation of 2 '-deoxyguanosine-carbon 8-bound Ochratoxin A Adduct in Rat Kidney DNA” Mol. Nutr. Food Res. 2009, 53, 154-155.
15. Weishar, J. L., McLaughlin, C. K., Baker, M., Gabryelski, W., Manderville, R. A. “Oxidation of a Biomarker for Phenol Carcinogen Exposure: Expanding the Redox Chemistry of 2 '-Deoxyguanosine” Org. Lett. 2008, 1839-1842.
14. Baker, M., Gabryelski W. “Collision Induced Dissociation of Deprotonated Glycolic Acid” Int. J. Mass Spectrom. 2007, 262, 128-135.
13. Baker, M., Gabryelski, W. “Collision induced dissociation of deprotonated glycolic acid” Int. J. Mass Spectrom. 2007, 262, 128–135.
12. Sultan, J., Gabryelski, W. “Structural Identification of Highly Polar Non-target Contaminants in Drinking Water by ESI-FAIMS-Q-TOF-MS.” Anal. Chem. 2006; 78(9); 2905-2917, (Accelerated Article).
11. Gabryelski, W., Froese, K. L. “Characterization of Naphthenic Acids by Electrospray Ionization High-Field Asymmetric Waveform Ion Mobility Mass Spectrometry.” Anal . Chem. 2003, 75, 4612-4623.
10. Gabryelski, W., Froese, K. L. “Comparison of High-Field Asymmetric Waveform Ion Mobility Mass Spectrometry (FAIMS) with GC methods in analysis of haloacetic acids in drinking water” Anal. Chem. 2003, 75, 2478-2486.
9. Gabryelski, W., Froese, K. L. “Rapid and Sensitive Differentiation of Anomers, Linkage and Position Isomers of Disaccharides using High-Field Asymmetric Waveform Ion Mobility Spectrometry (FAIMS)” J. Am. Soc. Mass Spectrom. 2003, 14 (3), 265-277.
8. Wu, F., Gabryelski, W., Froese, K. L. “Improved gas chromatography methods for micro-volume analysis of haloacetic acids in water and biological matrices” Analyst, 2002,10, 1318-1323.
7. Gabryelski, W., Li, L. “Photoinduced Dissociation of Electrospray Generated Ions in an Ion Trap/Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometer using a Pulsed CO2Laser.” Rapid Commun. Mass Spectrom., 2002, 16, 1805-1811.
6. Yalcin, T., Gabryelski, W., Li, L. “Structural Analysis of Polymer End Groups by Electrospray Ionization High-Energy Collision-Induced Dissociation Tandem Mass Spectrometry.” Anal. Chem., 2000, 72, 3847-3852.
5. Gabryelski, W., Li, L. “Photo-Induced Dissociation of Electrospray Generated Ions in an Ion Trap/Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometer.” Rev. Sci. Instruments, 1999, 70, 4192-4199.
4. Gabryelski, W., Purves, R. W., Li, L. “Characterization of an ESI Ion Trap/Linear TOF Mass Spectrometer for PTH-Amino Acid Analysis.” Int. J. Mass Spectrom. Ion Processes, 1998, 176, 213-225.
3. Yalcin, T., Gabryelski, W., Li, L. “Dissociation of Protonated Phenylthiohydantoin-Amino Acids and Phenylthiocarbamoyl-Dipeptides.” J. Mass Spectrom.,1998, 33, 543-553.
2. Purves, R. W., Gabryelski, W., Li, L. “Investigation of the Quantitative Capabilities of an ESI Ion Trap/Linear TOF Mass Spectrometer.” Rapid Commun. Mass Spectrom., 1998, 12, 695-700.
1. Purves, R. W., Gabryelski, W., Li, L. “The Effect of Using Silicon Based Diffusion Pump Fluid on Spectral Quality in an ESI Ion Trap/TOF Mass Spectrometer.” Rev. Sci. Instrum. 1997, 68 (8), 3252-3253.