Metabolomics of Broccoli Sprouts Using UPLC with Ion Mobility Enabled LC/MSE and TransOmics Informatics

Importance of the Topic

Broccoli sprouts are a rich source of bioactive metabolites with known antioxidant and chemoprotective properties. Understanding how environmental factors such as light exposure and nutrient supplementation modulate the metabolome of young plants is essential for optimizing growth conditions, improving nutritional quality, and guiding breeding strategies.

Objectives and Study Overview

This study aimed to characterize global changes in the small-molecule profile of broccoli sprouts grown under three distinct conditions (dark, continuous light, and light with sucrose treatment). Using an untargeted metabolomics approach, the research sought to link growth treatments to specific molecular phenotypes and to demonstrate the capabilities of the Waters Omics Research Platform.

Methodology and Instrumentation

Sprouts were germinated hydroponically for five days under controlled light regimes. Samples were flash-frozen, ground under liquid nitrogen, and extracted in hot methanol. Chromatographic separation was achieved on an ACQUITY UPLC CSH C18 column with a binary gradient of ammonium formate in ACN/H₂O and IPA/ACN. The eluent was analyzed by SYNAPT G2-S HDMS featuring ion mobility separation and alternating low/high energy MS E acquisition. Data processing and multivariate analyses were conducted with TransOmics Informatics and HDMS Compare.

Main Results and Discussion

Combining UPLC and ion mobility increased peak capacity and delivered drift-time resolved spectra that improved the detection of coeluting isobars. Multivariate tools including PCA and S-plots revealed clear clustering by growth condition, with light exposure driving increases in chlorophyll derivatives and sucrose treatment inducing distinct metabolite shifts. Ion mobility-enabled HDMS E produced cleaner MS/MS fragmentation spectra, facilitating confident structural assignments.

Benefits and Practical Application of the Method

The described workflow enables rapid, high-throughput phenotyping of plant metabolomes under varying environmental stimuli. Its enhanced separation power and comprehensive acquisition support applications in crop quality control, nutritional research, and natural product discovery.

Future Trends and Potential Applications

• Integration of metabolomics data with genomics and transcriptomics for systems biology.
• Automation and expansion of spectral libraries for faster annotation.
• Quantitative ion mobility-based lipidomics and secondary metabolite profiling.
• Field-deployable platforms for on-site crop monitoring.

Conclusion

The Waters Omics Research Platform, combining UPLC, ion mobility-enabled MS E, and TransOmics informatics, provides a robust solution for untargeted plant metabolomics. It delivers high resolution, structural clarity, and statistical tools necessary to link environmental variables to metabolic phenotypes.

References

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