Mgr. Karel Hořejší, Ph.D., an employee of the Department of Chemistry, and his co-authors from the University of Pardubice (led by Prof. Michal Holčapek) and the University of Gothenburg (led by Prof. Susann Teneberg, Sweden) have received the Vladimír Hanuš Award for the best published paper in the field of mass spectrometry.
The awarded work is entitled: „Comprehensive characterization of complex glycosphingolipids in human pancreatic cancer tissues“ and was presented by the lead author on 8 September 2025 as part of the 26th annual School of Mass Spectrometry, held in Špindlerův Mlýn in the Krkonoše Mountains.
This research has provided key insights into the lipidomics of cancer, particularly in identifying potential pancreatic cancer biomarkers based on the deep profiling of complex glycosphingolipids in tumour tissues and surrounding unaffected areas. High-performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS) was used to differentiate the structural isomers of these complex lipids and their oligosaccharide chains, as well as to make relative comparison between different types of tissue. The research was supplemented further by high-performance thin-layer chromatography (HPTLC), followed by binding assays using specific antibodies, lectins and bacteria. These assays confirmed the biological relevance of the identified structures. The results of this work significantly contribute to a deeper understanding of the role of glycoshingolipids in the pathogenesis of pancreatic cancer and may support the future development of new diagnostic and therapeutic approaches based on lipid biomarkers.
The Vladimír Hanuš Award is presented in honour of Vladimír Hanuš (1923-2009), one of the leading experts and pioneers of mass spectrometry in former Czechoslovakia and later the Czech Republic, in recognition of his extraordinary contributions to the field. Vladimír Hanuš made a fundamental contribution to the development of mass spectrometry and significantly influenced several generations of Czech mass spectrometrists through his carier.
