Nanomaterials in mass spectrometry ionization and prospects for biological application

The rapid development of nanotechnology has revolutionized scientific developments in recent decades. Mass spectrometry (MS) measurements are no exception and have benefited greatly from integration of nanomaterials in every step of analysis. This brief review summarizes recent developments in the field with the focus on the use of nanomaterials as alternative media to facilitate analyte ionization in laser-desorption ionization–mass spectrometry (LDI–MS) and secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS). The biological applications of both techniques are also detailed. The use of nanomaterials in other aspects of MS analysis, for example in sample clean-up and indirect analyte quantification, is briefly discussed.