Journal article

Publication year: 2017

Pages: 90-96

Journal: Nature Methods

Volume number: 14

ISSN: 1548-7091

DOI Link: https://doi.org/10.1038/NMETH.4071

Publisher: Nature Research

Abstract: 
We report an atmospheric pressure (AP) matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) setup with a lateral resolution of 1.4 mu m, a mass resolution greater than 100,000, and accuracy below +/- 2 p.p.m. We achieved this by coupling a focusing objective with a numerical aperture (NA) of 0.9 at 337 nm and a free working distance of 18 mm in coaxial geometry to an orbitrap mass spectrometer and optimizing the matrix application. We demonstrate improvement in image contrast, lateral resolution, and ion yield per unit area compared with a state-of-the-art commercial MSI source. We show that our setup can be used to detect metabolites, lipids, and small peptides, as well as to perform tandem MS experiments with 1.5-mu m(2) sampling areas. To showcase these capabilities, we identified subcellular lipid, metabolite, and peptide distributions that differentiate, for example, cilia and oral groove in Paramecium caudatum.

Harvard Citation style: Kompauer, M., Heiles, S. and Spengler, B. (2017) Atmospheric pressure MALDI mass spectrometry imaging of tissues and cells at 1.4-μm lateral resolution, Nature Methods, 14, pp. 90-96. https://doi.org/10.1038/NMETH.4071

APA Citation style: Kompauer, M., Heiles, S., & Spengler, B. (2017). Atmospheric pressure MALDI mass spectrometry imaging of tissues and cells at 1.4-μm lateral resolution. Nature Methods. 14, 90-96. https://doi.org/10.1038/NMETH.4071