Open AccessIn situ lipid profiling of insect pheromone glands by direct analysis in real time mass spectrometry
Author(s) -
Nicolas Cetraro,
Joanne Y. Yew
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
analyst (london. 1877. online)/analyst
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.998
H-Index - 153
eISSN - 1364-5528
pISSN - 0003-2654
DOI - 10.1039/d2an00840h
Subject(s) - dart ion source , sex pheromone , pheromone , chemistry , mass spectrometry , mass spectrometry imaging , dart , drosophila melanogaster , biochemistry , biology , computational biology , chromatography , ecology , botany , organic chemistry , ion , electron ionization , computer science , gene , programming language , ionization
Lipid pheromones play a significant role in the behavior and ecology of many insects. The characterization of pheromone structures is a significant challenge due to their low abundance and ephemeral nature. Here we present a method for the analysis of lipid molecules from single pheromone glands of Drosophila melanogaster (fruit fly) using Direct Analysis in Real Time mass spectrometry (DART MS). Our results reveal that DART MS analysis of single tissues generates reproducible, species-specific lipid profiles comprised of fatty acids, wax esters, diacylglycerides and triacylglycerides. In addition, the ion source temperature and application of a solvent wash can cause significant qualitative and quantitative changes in the mass spectral profile. Lastly, we show that untargeted chemical fingerprinting of the gland can be used to accurately categorize species according to phylogenetic subgroup or genotype. Collectively, our findings indicate that DART MS is a rapid and powerful method for characterizing a broad range of lipids in tissues with minimal preparation. The application of direct tissue DART MS will expand the "secretome" of molecules produced by pheromone glands. In addition to its direct relevance to chemical ecology, the method could potentially be used in pharmaceutical studies for the screening and detection of tissue-specific drug metabolites.