FSU Research Identifies Molecular Fingerprints of Human Impact on Global Water Systems
Florida State University researchers used ultrahigh-resolution mass spectrometry to identify molecular fingerprints revealing human activity impacts on water systems from the Amazon to the Arctic.
Newsnibs Staff
- 2026-10-16
- Updated 4:48 PM UTC
A Florida State University-led review of water chemistry research, led by Rob Spencer, appeared as the cover article in the September issue of Nature Water. The review examines how ultrahigh-resolution mass spectrometry can identify molecular fingerprints of human activity in rivers and other water systems around the world.
Spencer, who holds the title Verta Cox Professor of Oceanography in Florida State's Department of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Science, has worked with the technology for nearly 20 years. He said it allows researchers to detect diagnostic responses to human impacts at the molecular level.
The analysis, conducted at the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory in Florida, drew on tens of thousands of data points to identify organic markers in water samples. In the Amazon River Basin, the review identifies diagnostic markers tied to land-use change. In the Mississippi Basin, it identifies markers linked to agriculture.
The review also addresses Arctic permafrost, which holds nearly two-thirds of the Earth's soil carbon. Spencer and his co-authors highlight organic markers associated with thawing permafrost, information intended to help predict how that carbon will interact with the environment and the global carbon cycle as the region warms.
The work includes co-authors from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Colorado State University. It was supported by the National Science Foundation, NASA, the Novo Nordisk Foundation, and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
Photo by The Tampa Bay Estuary Program on Unsplash
