Chemical and Topographical Single‐Cell Imaging by Near‐Field Desorption Mass Spectrometry

Simultaneously acquiring chemical and topographical information within a single cell at nanoscale resolutions is vital to cellular biology, yet it remains a great challenge due to limited lateral resolutions and detection sensitivities. Herein, the development of near‐field desorption mass spectrometry for correlated chemical and topographical imaging is reported, thereby bridging the gap between laser‐based mass spectrometry (MS) methods and multimodal single‐cell imaging. Using this integrated platform, an imaging resolution of 250 nm and 3D topographically reconstructed chemical single‐cell imaging were achieved. This technique offers more in‐depth cellular information than micrometer‐range laser‐based MS imaging methods. Considering the simplicity and compact size of the near‐field device, this technique can be introduced to MALDI‐MS, expanding the multimodal abilities of MS at nanoscale resolutions.     

Morphometric Cell Classification for Single‐Cell MALDI‐Mass Spectrometry Imaging

The large‐scale and label‐free molecular characterization of single cells in their natural tissue habitat remains a major challenge in molecular biology. We present a method that integrates morphometric image analysis to delineate and classify individual cells with their single‐cell‐specific molecular profiles. This approach provides a new means to study spatial biological processes such as cancer field effects and the relationship between morphometric and molecular features.