Design and performance of air flow-assisted ionization imaging mass spectrometry system

Abstract

The imaging mass spectrometry (IMS) technology has experienced a rapid development in recent years. A new IMS technology which is based on air flow assisted ionization (AFAI) was reported. It allows for the convenient pretreatment of the samples and can image a large area of sample in a single measurement with high sensitivity. The AFAI in DESI mode was used as the ion source in this paper. The new IMS method is named AFADESI-IMS. The adoption of assisted air flow makes the sample pretreatment easy and convenient. An optimization of the distance between the ion transport tube and MS orifice increases the sensitivity of the system. For data processing, a program based on MATLAB with the function of numerical analysis was developed. A theoretical imaging resolution of a few hundred microns can be achieved. The composite AFAI-IMS images of different target analytes were imaged with high sensitivity. A typical AFAI-IMS image of the whole-body section of a rat was obtained in a single analytical measurement. The ability to image a large area for relevant samples in a single measurement with high sensitivity and repeatability is a significant advantage. The method has enormous potentials in the MS imaging of large and complicated samples.