Polyphenols comprise a large family of naturally occurring secondary metabolites of plant-derived foods and are among the principal micronutrients associated with the health beneficial effects of our diet. Liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (LC-MS) and, in the last few years, high resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS) is playing an important role in the research of polyphenols, not only for the determination of this family of compounds in food matrices, but also for the characterization and identification of new polyphenols, as well as the classification and authentication of natural extracts in the prevention of frauds. The purpose of this review is to describe recent advances in the LC-MS and LC-HRMS analysis and characterization of polyphenols in food focusing on the most relevant applications published in the last years. Trends regarding sample treatment, chromatographic separation, mass analyzers and chemometric approaches used in the determination and characterization of polyphenols will be addressed

A prominent sector of nanotechnology is occupied by a class of carbon-based nanoparticles known as fullerenes. Fullerene particle size and shape impact in how easily these particles are transported into and throughout the environment and living tissues. Currently, there is a lack of adequate methodology for their size and shape characterisation, identification and quantitative detection in environmental and biological samples. The most commonly used methods for their size measurements (aggregation, size distribution, shape, etc.), the effect of sampling and sample treatment on these characteristics and the analytical methods proposed for their determination in complex matrices are discussed in this review. For the characterisation and analysis of fullerenes in real samples, different analytical techniques including microscopy, spectroscopy, flow field-flow fractionation, electrophoresis, light scattering, liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry have been reported. The existing limitations and knowledge gaps in the use of these techniques are discussed and the necessity to hyphenate complementary ones for the accurate characterisation, identification and quantitation of these nanoparticles is highlighted.

The supply of safe and high-quality foodstuffs relies on the efficient protection of food from deterioration. However, all food-packaging materials can release small amounts of their chemical constituents when they touch food, and any substance that migrates from the packaging into the food is of concern if it could pose health problems to the consumer. The purpose of this review is to describe recent advances in the liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) analysis of food-packaging contaminants since 2009, focusing on some relevant families of compounds (e.g., bisphenol A, bisphenol A diglycidyl ethers and related compounds, UV-ink photoinitiators, perfluorinated compounds, and phthalates)