MALDI-TOF/TOF Mass spectrometer

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MALDI mass spectrometry is the optimal ionization method for large and nonpolar molecules and for this reason essential for several research groups of the Chemical Institutes of the University of Ulm. The instrument, which is currently centrally operated at the Mass Spectrometry Service Center and is very well utilized, was purchased in 1998. The analytical services performed on this instrument include identity control of organic polymers and macrocycles, metal complexes, peptides, glycans and oligonucleotides, identification of proteins from 1D and 2D gel bands and localization of post-translational modifications by "peptide mapping". These services are available to all research groups within the Faculty of Natural Sciences of the University of Ulm within the framework of the user regulations. The instrument is without alternative for measurements in the high mass range (> 10,000 Da), measurements with high sample throughput and as a "backup instrument" for the high-resolution FTICR instrument. Recently, however, downtime and repairs have been accumulating due to aged electronic components caused by the long lifetime of the instrument. Support from the manufacturer was discontinued in 2014, and repairs must be performed in-house with a limited number of spare parts still available. Due to high equipment downtime and limited functionality, reliable and continuous service operation is no longer possible. Therefore, financial support for a replacement by a new more powerful MALDI-TOF/TOF instrument is hereby requested.