Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometric imaging of complete rat sections using a triple quadrupole linear ion trap.

The fast imaging of complete rat sections by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization on a triple quadrupole linear ion trap is demonstrated. After administration of the pharmaceutical compound (MW=467.4 u) at 0.5 mg/kg the parent drug could be identified in full scan mode and in the enhanced product ion spectrum mode. Furthermore, the precursor ion mode could also be used to monitor the presence of the parent drug in the tissue section. In the selected reaction monitoring mode, using a laser frequency of 1000 Hz and a rastering speed of about 18 mm/s, a targeted representative image of drug distribution in a rat section could be obtained in less than 15 min. Copyright (c) 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.