2020 · Analytical and bioanalytical chemistry · open access
Fully automated dried blood spot sample preparation enables the detection of lower molecular mass peptide and non-peptide doping agents by means of LC-HRMS
Lange et al.
The finding, in our words
Automated preparation of dried blood spots, with non-destructive haematocrit measurement by near-infrared spectroscopy, enabled detection of 46 low-molecular-mass peptide and non-peptide doping agents using liquid chromatography–high-resolution mass spectrometry. This demonstrates that DBS can be processed robotically for reliable sports drug testing, supporting decentralised sample analysis.
A paraphrase to the Library’s standard, never the abstract. The source is one link away and is always the authority.
This study compared four dried blood spot devices for glucocorticoid detection, finding that the Mitra VAMS device offered the best combination of analytical recovery and user usability, whilst the HemaXis DB10 showed the least bias compared to whole blood.
Chen et al., Analytica chimica acta (paywalled) · source ↗
A 2025 review maps 28 microsampling devices, from dried spots and volumetric absorptive tips to upper-arm liquid capillary collectors, and names what a laboratory must control before their results are used: the haematocrit effect in non-volumetric dried samples, interstitial fluid from finger milking, volume, haemolysis and transport stability. Regulators on both sides of the Atlantic ask for the same two things, a device the patient can use safely and a sample fit for the test.
The study developed and validated an LC-MS/MS method for THC, its metabolites and synthetic cannabinoids in both dried blood spots and VAMS, showing that VAMS eliminates the haematocrit effect that limits DBS accuracy, thereby providing a reliable tool for toxicological and anti-doping analysis in decentralised settings.
Protti et al., Journal of chromatography. B, Analytical technologies in the biomedical and life sciences (paywalled) · source ↗
The analysis indicates that dried blood spots and volumetric absorptive microsampling enable minimally invasive monitoring of prohibited substances, with volumetric absorptive microsampling offering improved quantitative reliability over traditional dried spots.
A validated two-step LC-MS/MS protocol can identify 91 prohibited doping agents from a single dried blood spot collected on either cellulose cards or volumetric absorptive microsampling devices. This demonstrates robust multi-analyte screening from capillary blood, supporting decentralised anti-doping programmes where venous sampling is impractical.