LA-ICP-TOFMS for rapid, all-elemental and quantitative bioimaging, isotopic analysis and the investigation of plasma processes
Bauer, O.; Hachmöller, O.; Borovinskaya, O.; Sperling, M.; Schurek, H.; Ciarimboli, G.; Karst, U.
Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry
DOI: 10.1039/C8JA00288F
Recent developments in laser ablation (LA) chamber technologies enable LA-ICP-MS bioimaging at orders of magnitude higher speed and at higher spatial resolution than in the past. This increase in LA speed demands much faster mass spectral acquisition, making sequential mass analyzers impractical for multi-element analysis.
The TOFWERK icpTOF instruments acquire images up to 1000 pixels/s independent of laser ablation rate, with each individual pixel having information about the entire periodic table of elements. In addition, simultaneous detection enables application of alternative quantification strategies which further improves analysis accuracy.
In this work, rat kidney samples from Cisplatin (Pt‑based anti-cancer drug) perfusion experiments were imaged using an icpTOF coupled to an Analyte 2 Excimer laser equipped with HelEx ablation cell and the aerosol rapid introduction system (ARIS). The setup was also tested for its suitability to perform quantitative imaging by isotope dilution analysis (IDA). The authors demonstrated that:
- Images can be acquired 5 times faster compared to another quadrupole-based setup
- IDA analysis with the icpTOF is feasible
- Elements other than Pt could be imaged in parallel providing additional information about the sample
- Experimental artifacts can be much more easily identified using the icpTOF