Phase analysis of mass spectrometry imaging data using high-resolution MALDI-TOFMS “NewSpiralTOF™” and vertex component analysis
MSTips No. 528
Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry imaging (MALDI-MSI) is used to visualize the localization of proteins, peptides, metabolites, and drugs on sample surfaces. In MALDI-MSI, the mass spectrum is often influenced by various compounds on the sample section in addition to the peak of the target compounds, making mass separation using a high-resolution mass spectrometer crucial. On the other hand, when numerous peaks, including isobars, are observed in the mass spectrum, creating and analyzing extracted mass images of each peak is extremely time-consuming. Therefore, for efficient data analysis, the extraction of characteristic mass spectral patterns and phase analysis based on them are essential. This report introduces a phase analysis method using vertex component analysis (VCA). Furthermore, a machine learning-based noise reduction method (FINE-AI Filter) was applied as a preprocessing step.