Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 24, 2026

Quantitative Analysis of the Cellular Lipidome of Saccharomyces Cerevisiae Using Liquid Chromatography Coupled with Tandem Mass Spectrometry
Published on: March 8, 2020
Direct Depolymerization Coupled to Liquid Extraction Surface Analysis-High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry for the
Chiara Giorio1,2, Edwige Moyroud3, Beverley J Glover4
1Department of Chemistry , University of Cambridge , Lensfield Road , Cambridge CB2 1EW , United Kingdom.
Abstract:
The cuticle, the outermost layer covering the epidermis of most aerial organs of land plants, can have a heterogeneous composition even on the surface of the same organ. The main cuticle component is the polymer cutin which, depending on its chemical composition and structure, can have different biophysical properties. In this study, we introduce a new on-surface depolymerization method coupled to liquid extraction surface analysis (LESA) high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) for a fast and spatially resolved chemical characterization of the cuticle of plant tissues. The method is composed of an on-surface saponification, followed by extraction with LESA using a chloroform-acetonitrile-water (49:49:2) mixture and direct HRMS detection. The method is also compared with LESA-HRMS without prior depolymerization for the analysis of the surface of the petals of Hibiscus richardsonii flowers, which have a ridged cuticle in the proximal region and a smooth cuticle in the distal region. We found that on-surface saponification is effective enough to depolymerize the cutin into its monomeric constituents thus allowing detection of compounds that were not otherwise accessible without a depolymerization step. The effect of the depolymerization procedure was more pronounced for the ridged/proximal cuticle, which is thicker and richer in epicuticular waxes compared with the cuticle in the smooth/distal region of the petal.
More Related Videos
07:25Quantitative Metabolomics of Saccharomyces Cerevisiae Using Liquid Chromatography Coupled with Tandem Mass Spectrometry
Published on: January 5, 2021
09:09Semi-Quantitative Analysis of Peptidoglycan by Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometry and Bioinformatics
Published on: October 13, 2020
Related Concept Videos
High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry (HRMS)
Mass Spectrometry: Complex Analysis
GC–MS is a powerful hyphenated method commonly used in forensics and environmental...
Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS): Interferences
Surface Tension, Capillary Action, and Viscosity
The various IMFs between identical molecules of a substance are examples of cohesive forces. The molecules within a liquid are surrounded by other molecules and are attracted equally in all directions by the cohesive forces within the liquid. However, the molecules on the surface of a liquid are attracted only by about one-half as many molecules. Because of the unbalanced molecular attractions on the surface molecules, liquids contract to form a shape that minimizes the number...
Cell-surface Signaling
Surface Tension and Surface Energy
Consider a beaker filled with liquid. The bulk molecules in the liquid experience equal attractive forces on all sides with the surrounding molecules. However, the surface molecules experience a net attractive force downward due to the bulk molecules. The surface of the liquid behaves like a stretched membrane,...