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Review
. 2018 Jun 19;8(40):22335-22350.
doi: 10.1039/c8ra01574k.

Advances in mass spectrometry-based metabolomics for investigation of metabolites

Jun-Ling Ren  1 , Ai-Hua Zhang  1 , Ling Kong  1 , Xi-Jun Wang  1   2   3
Affiliations
Review

Advances in mass spectrometry-based metabolomics for investigation of metabolites

Jun-Ling Ren et al. RSC Adv. .

Abstract

Metabolomics is the systematic study of all the metabolites present within a biological system, which consists of a mass of molecules, having a variety of physical and chemical properties and existing over an extensive dynamic range in biological samples. Diverse analytical techniques are needed to achieve higher coverage of metabolites. The application of mass spectrometry (MS) in metabolomics has increased exponentially since the discovery and development of electrospray ionization and matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization techniques. Significant advances have also occurred in separation-based MS techniques (gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry, capillary electrophoresis-mass spectrometry, and ion mobility-mass spectrometry), as well as separation-free MS techniques (direct infusion-mass spectrometry, matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-mass spectrometry, mass spectrometry imaging, and direct analysis in real time mass spectrometry) in the past decades. This review presents a brief overview of the recent advanced MS techniques and their latest applications in metabolomics. The software/websites for MS result analyses are also reviewed.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing financial interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1. MS-based technologies currently used for metabolomics. CE: capillary electrophoresis; DART: direct analysis in real time; DESI: desorption electrospray ionization; DI: direct infusion; DTIMS: drift-time ion mobility-mass spectrometry; FAIMS: field asymmetric ion mobility-mass spectrometry; GC: gas chromatography; HILIC: hydrophilic interaction chromatography; IM-MS: ion mobility-mass spectrometry; LAESI: laser ablation electrospray ionization; LC: liquid chromatography; MALDI: matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization; MSI: mass spectrometry imaging; RPLC: reversed-phase liquid chromatography; SFC: supercritical fluid chromatography; SIMS: secondary ion mass spectrometry; TWIMS: traveling-wave ion mobility-mass spectrometry.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2. Flowchart depicting the basic workflow of GC-MS, LC-MS, and CE-MS techniques.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3. Scheme of IM-MS technique. Reprinted with permission from ref. 72. Copyright (2017) Nature.
Fig. 4
Fig. 4. Flowchart depicting the basic workflow of MALDI-MS. Reprinted with permission from ref. 101. Copyright (2018) ACS Publications.
Fig. 5
Fig. 5. Flowchart depicting the basic workflow of MALDI MSI. Reprinted with permission from ref. 125. Copyright (2010) Nature.
Fig. 6
Fig. 6. Flowchart depicting the basic workflow of SIMS MSI. Reprinted with permission from ref. 101. Copyright (2018) ACS Publications.
Fig. 7
Fig. 7. Scheme of DESI MSI technique. Reprinted with permission from ref. 136. Copyright (2006) Science.
Fig. 8
Fig. 8. Flowchart depicting the basic workflow of LAESI MSI. Reprinted with permission from ref. 101. Copyright (2018) ACS Publications.
Fig. 9
Fig. 9. Scheme of DART MSI technique. Reprinted with permission from ref. 149. Copyright (2011) Elsevier.
Fig. 10
Fig. 10. Trends in MS-based metabolomics.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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