[en] mass spectrometry ; internal energy ; matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization ; MALDI ; matrix
[en] In this paper, we report the measurement of the degree of analyte fragmentation in AP-MALDI as a function of the matrix and of the laser fluence. The analytes include p-OCH3-benzylpyridinium, three peptides containing the sequence EEPP (which cleave very efficiently at the E-P site), and three deoxynucleosides (dA, dG, and dC), which lose the neutral sugar to give the protonated base. We found that the matrix hardness/softness was consistent when comparing the analytes, with a consensus ranking from hardest to softest: CHCA >> DHB > SA approximate to THAP > ATT > HPA. However, the exact ranking can be fluence-dependent, for example between ATT and HPA. Our goal here was to provide the scientific community with a detailed dataset that can be used to compare with theoretical predictions. We tried to correlate the consensus ranking with different matrix properties: sublimation or decomposition temperature (determined using thermogravimetry), analyte initial velocity, and matrix proton affinity. The best correlation was found with the matrix proton affinity.
Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique (Communauté française de Belgique) - F.R.S.-FNRS