Applications of Charge Detection Mass Spectrometry in Molecular Biology and Biotechnology.

Charge detection mass spectrometry (CDMS) is a single-particle technique where the masses of individual ions are determined from simultaneous measurement of their mass-to-charge ratio (m/z) and charge. Masses are determined for thousands of individual ions, and then the results are binned to give a mass spectrum. Using this approach, accurate mass distributions can be measured for heterogeneous and high-molecular-weight samples that are usually not amenable to analysis by conventional mass spectrometry. Recent applications include heavily glycosylated proteins, protein complexes, protein aggregates such as amyloid fibers, infectious viruses, gene therapies, vaccines, and vesicles such as exosomes.