Education and Outreach
AMRM activities include education and training initiatives to improve analytical proficiency skills; quality assurance programs to help improve laboratory performance; and dissemination of information via meeting presentations and journal publications.
NIST Quality Assurance Programs (QAPS)
- Dietary Supplement Laboratory Quality Assurance Program (DSQAP)
Participant laboratories measure concentrations of elements (nutritional or toxic), vitamins, fatty acids, bioactive or marker phytochemicals compounds, and/or contaminants in samples distributed by NIST. Participant data is compiled at NIST and analyzed for accuracy, precision, and concordance within the community. Reports and certificates of completion are sent to participants, and workshops and webinars are held to discuss results as well as methodological advancements.
- Historical Quality Assurance Programs
- Health Assessment Measurements Quality Assurance Program (HAMQAP)
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) established HAMQAP to support the joint measurement needs of the food, dietary supplement, and clinical communities. Participants in the HAMQAP measured concentrations of nutritional and toxic elements, fat- and water-soluble vitamins, fatty acids, active and/or marker compounds, and contaminants in samples distributed by NIST. Samples that represent human intake (e.g., foods, dietary supplements, tobacco) were paired with samples that represent human output (e.g., blood, serum, plasma, urine), and analytes were paired where possible to represent the full spectrum of health assessment. The HAMQAP concluded in 2021.
- Vitamin D Metabolites Quality Assurance Program (VitDQAP)
The ODS/NIST Vitamin D Metabolites Quality Assurance Program (VitDQAP) supported improvements in the reliability of vitamin D measurements in human serum and plasma. Results from the comparison studies helped participants make to maintain and improve their measurement comparability and thus generate more accurate clinical determinations, which in turn supports better informed health-care decisions. Interlaboratory comparison studies were directed toward the measurement of 25-hydroxyvitamin D2, 25-hydroxyvitamin D3, and 3-epi-25-hydroxyvitamin D3 in selected serum and plasma matrices as well as method-appropriate control materials. As other international quality assurance programs transitioned to the kinds of accuracy-based assessments modeled by the VitDQAP, this program concluded in 2015.
- Fatty Acids in Human Serum and Plasma Quality Assurance Program (FAQAP)
Interlaboratory comparison studies were directed toward the measurement of 24 fatty acids in selected serum and plasma matrices. NIST recommends using Standard Reference Materials (SRM) 2378 - Fatty Acids in Frozen Human Serum and 1950 - Metabolites in Human Plasma to validate fatty acid measurement methodologies and to value-assign in-house control materials. In 2017 the ongoing activities of the FAQAP were organized with the HAMQAP (see above) in an effort to better serve analyst community needs.
Natural Product Characterization and Integrity for Dietary Supplement Research
Dietary supplements and natural product preparations must be rigorously identified and sufficiently characterized to support the replicability of research on their health effects. A description of resources and select references to aid investigators in assessing the identity, purity, composition, and strength of natural products can be found on the ODS Natural Product Characterization and Integrity webpage.
Botanical Identification and Documentation Resources
The funding of initiatives at AOAC International and at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) have resulted in publications on the following topics:
