Structure 2010 - Advances In Structure Elucidation

RSC Molecular Spectroscopy & NMR Discussion Groups with the British Mass Spectrometry Society:

Structure 2010 - Advances in Structure Elucidation

165 delegates attended Structure 2010 at the Barcelo Hinckley Island Hotel in Leicestershire on the 24th & 25th Feb 2010. This event was a cross-disciplinary joint venture between the MSG, the NMRDG and the BMSS exploring and highlighting Advances in Structure Elucidation with a focus on small molecule pharmaceutical analysis.

The meeting was opened by our Honerable Treasurer Prof. Paul Thomas, with 5 excellent talks on the 1st afternoon, including the plenary lecture by Prof. Herb Hill from Washington State University detailing the development and use of Ion Mobility Spectroscopy coupled with Mass Spectrometry.

There than followed a poster session and drinks reception held in the exhibition hall where 21 MS, NMR and consumables vendors were gathered to discuss all things "Structure Elucidation". Running concurrently with this was a very successful vendor workshop, with 3 x 30 minute presentations from Thermo Scientific, ACD/Labs and Mestrelab Research. The evening concluded with a conference dinner and the presentation of the 2nd Duncan Bryant Memorial Prize awarded to the "best poster" in show. The winner was Angelika Galezowska from the University of Southampton for her poster entitled "Fragmentation of Quinazolines using ESI-CID MS/MS: Unusual Formation of Radical Product Ions" (below).

The second day kicked off with the 2nd plenary lecture given by Prof. Lucio Frydman from the Wiezmann Institute, Israel, describing techniques for acquiring rapid 2-Dimensional NMR experiments on hyper-polarized material in a matter of seconds. There followed a further 5 lectures, including a live demonstration of the power of X-Ray Crystallography by Dr Dave Watkin of the University of Oxford.

By the close of the meeting there really had been "something for everyone" and the cross-disciplinary nature of the meeting served to open all the attendees eyes to advances in their own fields as well as those in complimentary techniques. The meeting was hailed as an overwhelming success, not only by the delegates but by the vendors as well and the attention to detail by the organising committee was noted and appreciated. Keep your eyes peeled for the next Structure meeting coming soon...

By

Steve Coombes, Mar 2010