Sponsored content – Interview
Interview with Dr Shane Needham
Interview was conducted by Bethany Small, Commissioning Editor of Bioanalysis
Along with being a husband and father of four, Shane Needham is Co-Founder and Laboratory Director of Alturas Analytics, Inc. After receiving his PhD from University of Rhode Island and gaining valuable MS experience at Pfizer, he seized an opportunity to return west and lead talented scientists in the formation of a highly respected CRO. An active contributor in the scientific community, Shane has over 100 publications and speaking engagements focused on bioanalysis and applied technology advancement.
Q At what stage in your career did you first become involved in bioanalysis and
what attracted you to this area? I was fortunate enough to obtain my BS in chemistry and immediately start working in the industry for Pfizer supporting bioanalysis using MS in 1993. I worked in a great group at Pfizer where we used the first API-MS in the industry (Sciex API III serial number one). It was exciting to measure (qual and quan) drugs and metabolites from biological fluids and be a part of the team to develop new therapeutics. From the age of 11–12 I always wanted to be an analytical chemist where thinking that a chemical measure- ment (‘test’) must always be performed for new products and research to occur. In col- lege I worked for environmental testing labo- ratories using GC-MS and in my reading of current articles, I became interested in bio- analysis where an analytical chemist could be part of the cure of disease. This whole process attracted my attention to the area of bioanalysis.
Q Could you provide us with an update on any research activities currently under
way within your organization? Alturas Analytics, Inc. is actively involved in collaborations with technology leaders or
10.4155/bio.16.4 © 2016 Future Science Ltd
leading manufacturers to develop integrated HPLC devices for use in the ESI-MS source. The coupling of the column and source will be a huge benefit to future research including bioanalysis. We are also actively involved in the ‘reintroduction’ of GC-MS/ MS assays for biomarkers and drugs and metabolites not amenable to LC-MS. This is an exciting area of ‘retro’ research to be a part of the use of more conventional tech- niques to solve current problems in bioanal- ysis. It is fulfilling to see that as analytical chemists we must understand that not one tool or technique will work for all assays or problems and be able to use our background and experience to select the right technique for the project.
Progress & obstacles in 2015
Q What would you say were the bioanalytical highlights of 2015? One of the key highlights for bioanalysis comes from the area of integrated HPLC col- umn and the ESI-MS source. These include the ionKey from Waters and the PicoFuze® from New Objective. These ‘nanospray/ microspray’ integrated devices will play a large role in the coupling of HPLC and MS to facilitate ease of use, signal enhancements
Bioanalysis (2016) ISSN 1757-6180
Shane Needham Alturas Analytics, Inc. Moscow, ID, USA
sneedham@alturasanalytics.com
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