Infrared Laser Desorption Ion Mobility Mass Spectrometer

描述（由申请人提供）：本研究计划的目标是开发一种红外激光解吸电离（IR-LDI）离子迁移率质谱仪（IMMS），用于复杂系统中生物分子的分析，如直接组织研究和生物气溶胶成分的鉴定。IMMS仪器在二维空间中分离生物分子离子。第一个维度是气相迁移率分离，其中激光解吸产生的离子在恒定电场的影响下通过气体碰撞池漂移，并由于碰撞截面的差异而分离。离开漂移池后，离子被正交提取到飞行时间质谱仪中。因为分离是在气相中进行的，所以比液相分离（如液相色谱或毛细管电泳）要快得多。IR-LDI IMMS的性能目标是离子迁移率分辨率为50，质量分辨率为3000，质量范围为20 kDa，检测限为10 fmol。该仪器将在德克萨斯州休斯顿的Ionwerks公司建造。Ionwerks公司成立于1986年，是一家成功的质谱仪系统和设备供应商。作为这项研究的一部分，Ionwerks正在与路易斯安那州立大学的质谱研究小组合作，他们是使用红外激光直接分析生物分子的专家。该小组将开发IMMS方法，以最少的样品预处理快速分析细胞和组织。这项技术的商业应用包括生物医学研究、临床诊断和生物制剂检测。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The goal of this research program is to develop an infrared laser desorption ionization (IR-LDI ion mobility mass spectrometer (IMMS) for application to the analysis of biomolecules in complex systems such as direct tissue studies and the identification of the components of bioaerosols. The IMMS instrument separates biomolecule ions in two dimensions. The first dimension is the gas phase mobility separation in which the ions resulting from laser desorption drift through a gas collision cell under the influence of a constant electric field and are separated due to differences in collision cross-section. After exiting the drift cell, the ions are orthogonally extracted into a time-of-flight mass spectrometer. Because the separation takes place in the gas phase, it is significantly more rapid than liquid phase separations such as liquid chromatography or capillary electrophoresis. The performance goals for the IR-LDI IMMS are an ion mobility resolution of 50, mass resolution of 3000, mass range or 20 kDa, and a detection limit of 10 fmol. The instrument will be constructed at Ionwerks in Houston, TX. Ionwerks was founded in 1986 and is an accomplished provider of mass spectrometer systems and equipment. As part of this research, Ionwerks is collaborating with the mass spectrometry research group at Louisiana State University who are experts in the use of IR lasers for the direct analysis of biomolecules. The group will develop IMMS methods for the rapid analysis of cells and tissue with minimal sample pre-treatment. Commercial applications of this technology are in biomedical research, clinical diagnostics, and the detection of biological agents.