Transmission-mode MALDI-2 mass spectrometry imaging of cells and tissues at subcellular resolution.
Marcel NiehausJens SoltwischM E BelovKlaus DreisewerdPublished in: Nature methods (2019)
Matrix-assisted laser desorption-ionization mass spectrometry imaging in transmission-mode geometry (t-MALDI-MSI) can provide molecular information with a pixel size of 1 µm and smaller, which makes this label-free method highly interesting for characterizing the chemical composition of tissues and cells on a (sub)cellular level. However, a major hindrance for wider use of the technology is the reduced ion abundance at small pixel sizes. Here we mitigate this problem by use of laser-induced post-ionization (MALDI-2) and by adapting a t-MALDI-2 ion source to an Orbitrap mass analyzer. We demonstrate the crucial sensitivity and accuracy boosts that are achieved with this combination by visualizing the distribution of numerous phospho- and glycolipids in mouse cerebellum and kidney slices, and in cultured Vero B4 cells. With brain tissue, a pixel size of 600 nm was achieved. Our method could constitute a valuable new tool for research in cell biology and biomedicine.
Keyphrases
- mass spectrometry
- high resolution
- liquid chromatography
- gas chromatography
- induced apoptosis
- high performance liquid chromatography
- capillary electrophoresis
- label free
- cell cycle arrest
- gene expression
- high resolution mass spectrometry
- tandem mass spectrometry
- endoplasmic reticulum stress
- single cell
- single molecule
- signaling pathway
- stem cells
- healthcare
- endothelial cells
- cell therapy
- multiple sclerosis
- cell death
- health information
- ultra high performance liquid chromatography
- cell proliferation
- fluorescence imaging