Chemical Imaging of Plant Samples by Cryo-TOF-SIMS

Abstract

Time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) has been recognized gradually as a powerful analytical tool for plant materials. The availability of TOF-SIMS measurements in a research field of plant science is briefly introduced. Main polymer components of plant cell wall, cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin are detected as fragment ions. Inorganics and low molecular-weight extractives are detectable as elemental and molecular ions. In living plant materials, there are various water-soluble organic/inorganic chemicals. There is a strong apprehension that such water-soluble chemicals can be moved by the sample preparation process of trimming, sectioning, and drying. Recently, the author and co-workers have analyzed freeze-fixed plant samples by cryo-TOF-SIMS. The latest topics of cryo-TOF-SIMS dealing with frozen-hydrated samples are introduced.