Gain Switching for a Detection System to Accommodate a Newly Developed MALDI-Based Quantification Method

Area of Science:

• Analytical Chemistry
• Mass Spectrometry

Background:

• Matrix-derived ions in MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry are typically removed to improve analyte detection.
• This ion deflection prevents the use of analyte-to-matrix ion ratios for quantification.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate a method for measuring analyte-to-matrix ion abundance ratios in MALDI-TOF.
• To enable a previously limited quantification strategy in MALDI-TOF analysis.

Main Methods:

• A minor instrumental modification to a standard MALDI-TOF instrument was implemented.
• The modification involved incorporating a detector gain switching technique.

Main Results:

• The analyte-to-matrix ion abundance ratio was successfully measured.
• The detector gain switching allowed for the quantification of the ratio despite matrix ion presence.

Conclusions:

• A simple modification to MALDI-TOF instruments enables quantification using analyte-to-matrix ion ratios.
• This method expands the utility of MALDI-TOF for quantitative applications.