Episode 41: N‑Glycans, Whey Protein, and the Gut Microbiome: Mass Spec Insights with Matthew Bolino

How do the hidden carbohydrate structures on your favorite protein powders shape the gut microbiome? In this episode of Concentrating on Chromatography, Matthew Bolino, M.S., from the University of Nevada, Reno, breaks down his latest research on N‑glycans from common dietary proteins (whey, egg white, soy, and pea) and how their structural diversity influences microbial fermentation and short‑chain fatty acid production.Bolino explains what N‑glycans are, why they behave like fiber in the gut, and how his team isolates and characterizes them using ethanol washes, enzymatic release (PNGase F and gut‑derived endoglycosidases), and advanced MALDI‑TOF and HILIC‑QTOF workflows. He also discusses his 2025 work comparing synthetic versus bovine whey N‑glycomes and mapping N‑glycan profiles across dietary protein sources, revealing how glycan architecture can reshape community diversity in in vitro fecal fermentations.Geared toward undergraduate and early‑career analytical chemists, this conversation dives into practical mass spec trade‑offs (MALDI vs QTOF vs LC/GC), real‑world troubleshooting in glycomics labs, and how microbiome‑targeted therapeutics and “symbiotic” designs may emerge from pairing specific microbes with preferred glycan structures. Bolino closes with career advice on building biomolecular analysis skills, understanding instrumentation fundamentals, and entering the rapidly growing field of glycomics and microbiome research.