1 research outputs found
Mass Spectrometry-Based Visualization of Molecules Associated with Human Habitats
The
cars we drive, the homes we live in, the restaurants we visit, and
the laboratories and offices we work in are all a part of the modern
human habitat. Remarkably, little is known about the diversity of
chemicals present in these environments and to what degree molecules
from our bodies influence the built environment that surrounds us
and vice versa. We therefore set out to visualize the chemical diversity
of five built human habitats together with their occupants, to provide
a snapshot of the various molecules to which humans are exposed on
a daily basis. The molecular inventory was obtained through untargeted
liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS)
analysis of samples from each human habitat and from the people that
occupy those habitats. Mapping MS-derived data onto 3D models of the
environments showed that frequently touched surfaces, such as handles
(e.g., door, bicycle), resemble the molecular fingerprint of the human
skin more closely than other surfaces that are less frequently in
direct contact with humans (e.g., wall, bicycle frame). Approximately
50% of the MS/MS spectra detected were shared between people and the
environment. Personal care products, plasticizers, cleaning supplies,
food, food additives, and even medications that were found to be a
part of the human habitat. The annotations indicate that significant
transfer of chemicals takes place between us and our built environment.
The workflows applied here will lay the foundation for future studies
of molecular distributions in medical, forensic, architectural, space
exploration, and environmental applications