ICP-MS Elemental Analysis

Targeted List

Targeted Compound List

Targeted List (partial)

NO.	Element	Symbol
1	钙	Ca
2	钾	K
3	镁	Mg
4	钠	Na
5	磷	P
6	铬	Cr
7	锰	Mn
8	钴	Co
9	钼	Mo
10	铜	Cu
11	硒	Se
12	铁	Fe
13	锌	Zn
14	硼	B
15	硫	S
16	锂	Li
17	钒	V
18	锶	Sr
19	铝	Al
20	铅	Pb
21	砷	As
22	汞	Hg

Full list available on request — contact our team.

Technical Specifications

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Platform	Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS)
Acquisition mode	Collision cell (He-KED) removes polyatomic interferences; simultaneous multi-element acquisition
Quantification Unit	Standard-curve quantification, μg/L or μg/g
QC	Certified reference materials + in-queue QCs to monitor recovery and batch stability

Sample Requirements

SAMPLE REQUIREMENTS

Whole blood / serum

200 μL

Urine

1 mL

Tissue

50 mg

Hair / nails

50 mg

Water samples

5 mL

Feed / matrices

200 mg

Replicates: cell / microbial samples ≥6 replicates per group; animal samples ≥10 per group; clinical samples ≥50 per group with strictly controlled inclusion criteria. Sampling site, timing and handling must be consistent between experimental and control groups.

Submission notes: applicable to whole blood / serum, urine, tissue, hair / nails, water and feed / matrix samples; solid samples are microwave-digested (nitric-acid system) before analysis; recommended amounts are per single assay—submit 2–3× the recommended amount; keep sampling sites consistent across groups for tissue; ship refrigerated.

Workflow

WORKFLOW

Consultation

Study goals / panel selection

Proposal & Quote

Targets / timeline / agreement

Sample Intake

Cold chain / pre-check / labeling

Experiment

Acquisition / QC

Delivery

Quantification + interpretation + raw data

Deliverables: quantitative results table for 43 elements (content + units) · summary by nutritional-mineral / micronutrient / toxic-element categories · group-wise T-test and fold-change analysis · hierarchical clustering and PCA modeling · full analysis report and raw data.

References

REFERENCES

[1] MOHAMMED NAWI A, CHIN S F, JAMAL R. Simultaneous analysis of 25 trace elements in micro volume of human serum by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS)[J]. Practical Laboratory Medicine, 2020, 18: e00142.

[2] ZHANG G, ZHANG F, LIU W, et al. A simple, rapid method for simultaneous determination of multiple elements in serum by using an ICP-MS equipped with collision cell[J]. BMC Chemistry, 2023, 17(1): 34.

Applications

APPLICATIONS

Trace-element nutrition assessmentHeavy-metal contamination testingMineral-element metabolism researchElemental analysis of food & environmental samplesElemental profiling of biological samples

FAQ

How long does a ICP-MS Elemental Analysis project take?

Mature targeted panels typically take 1-3 weeks; untargeted projects take 2-4 weeks (counted from sample receipt and QC approval). The exact timeline is confirmed in writing before project start, and progress is trackable on the OmicsHub cloud platform.

What if my sample amount is below the recommendation?

Please do not dilute your samples. Low-input samples can often be accommodated by adjusting the preparation workflow — tell us the actual amount and our technical team will assess feasibility and note adjustments in the study plan.

Can I add targets to an existing panel?

Yes. Mature panels support on-demand additions; novel analytes outside the list can be implemented through custom method development (requires standards and extra validation time) — see our Custom Targeted Metabolomics service.

What samples do you need for ICP-MS Elemental Analysis?

Serum/plasma ≥100 μL (fasting, no haemolysis), tissue ≥50 mg (snap-frozen), cells ≥1×10⁶ (medium washed off), urine ≥200 μL. Keep fasting time consistent, aliquot into single-use volumes and avoid freeze–thaw. Full guidance: Technical Resources → Sample Guide.