Matrix Pre-Coated Targets for Direct Lipid Analysis and Imaging of Tissue

We have developed targets pre-coated with matrix for imaging lipids in tissues using MALDI-MS. Thin tissue sections (rat kidney and mouse or rat brains) were placed onto 2,5-diaminonaphthalene pre-coated targets (prepared beforehand by a protocol utilizing sublimation) and were washed with ammonium formate solution. After a brief drying period, the target slides were imaged by MALDI MS. The resulting images from these sections were of equivalent quality to those obtained using the usual post-coating approach such as sublimation and spraying in term of the sharpness of substructures in the images demonstrated by imaging at spatial resolutions of 100, 10 and 5 μm. Matrix pre-coated targets have a shelf-life more than 6 months when kept in a dark, non-humid environment such as a non-transparent desiccator.