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Mapping Enzyme Activity on Tissue by Functional Mass Spectrometry Imaging
Author(s) -
Hamilton Brett R.,
Marshall David L.,
Casewell Nicholas R.,
Harrison Robert A.,
Blanksby Stephen J.,
Undheim Eivind A. B.
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
angewandte chemie
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1521-3757
pISSN - 0044-8249
DOI - 10.1002/ange.201911390
Subject(s) - mass spectrometry imaging , enzyme , chemistry , mass spectrometry , in situ , phospholipid , enzyme assay , biochemistry , computational biology , biology , chromatography , organic chemistry , membrane
Abstract Enzymes are central components of most physiological processes, and are consequently implicated in various pathologies. High‐resolution maps of enzyme activity within tissues therefore represent powerful tools for elucidating enzymatic functions in health and disease. Here, we present a novel mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) method for assaying the spatial distribution of enzymatic activity directly from tissue. MSI analysis of tissue sections exposed to phospholipid substrates produced high‐resolution maps of phospholipase activity and specificity, which could subsequently be compared to histological images of the same section. Functional MSI thus represents a new and generalisable method for imaging biological activity in situ.