Exploring Biosignatures Associated with Thenardite by Geomatrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization Fourier Transform Ion Cyclotron Resonance Mass Spectrometry (GALDI-FTICR-MS)

Geomatrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (GALDI) in conjunction with a Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometer (FTICR-MS) has been employed to determine how effectively bio/organic molecules associated with the mineral thenardite (Na 2 SO 4 ) can be detected. GALDI is based...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Geomicrobiology journal 2008-01, Vol.25 (7-8), p.432-440
Main Authors: Richardson, C. Doc, Hinman, Nancy W., McJunkin, Timothy R., Kotler, J. Michelle, Scott, Jill R.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
CALIFORNIA
DESORPTION
evaporite
FTICR-MS
GALDI
geomatrix
GLYCINE
INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
ION CYCLOTRON-RESONANCE
IONIZATION
LAKES
laser desorption
LASERS
MASS SPECTROMETERS
mass spectrometry
MASS SPECTROSCOPY
OCTADECANOIC ACID
SAMPLE PREPARATION
SENSITIVITY
SIGNAL-TO-NOISE RATIO
stearic acid
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Summary:Geomatrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (GALDI) in conjunction with a Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometer (FTICR-MS) has been employed to determine how effectively bio/organic molecules associated with the mineral thenardite (Na 2 SO 4 ) can be detected. GALDI is based on the ability of the mineral host to assist desorption and ionization of bio/organic molecules without additional sample preparation. When glycine was mixed with thenardite, glycine was deprotonated to produce C 2 H 4 NO 2 − at m/z 74.025. The combination of stearic acid with thenardite produced a complex cluster ion at m/z 390.258 in the negative mode, which was assigned a composition of C 18 H 39 O 7 Na − . A natural sample of thenardite from Searles Lake in California also produced a peak at m/z 390.260. The bio/organic signatures in both the laboratory-based and natural samples were heterogeneously dispersed as revealed by chemical imaging. The detection limits for the stearic acid and thenardite combination were estimated to be 3 parts per trillion or ∼7 zeptomoles (10 − 21 ) per laser spot. Attempts to improve the signal-to-noise ratio by co-adding FTICR-MS data predetermined to contain the biosignatures of interest revealed problems due to a lack of phase coherence between data sets.
ISSN:0149-0451
1521-0529
DOI:10.1080/01490450802403115