On-Slide Preparation of Caenorhabditis elegans toward Quantitative, High-Resolution LA-ICP-TOF Mass Spectrometry Imaging.
- 1Department of Chemistry, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan48824, United States.
- 2Department of Microbiology, Genetics and Immunology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan48824, United States.
- 3Elemental Health Institute, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan48824, United States.
Abstract
Metal homeostasis is essential for biological functions and has been implicated in many diseases. Laser ablation inductively coupled plasma time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-TOF-MS) imaging is a powerful tool for spatially resolved elemental imaging in heterogeneous tissues. The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) is a well-established model organism for metal biology research. However, there have been few reports on mass spectrometry-based metal imaging of C. elegans due to challenges in sample preparation for high-resolution and quantitative analysis. In this study, we established an integrated workflow consisting of sample preparation, imaging, and quantitative analysis for whole-animal elemental imaging of C. elegans by LA-ICP-TOF-MS. With the assistance of 3D-printed uniform layer media application tools (ULMATs), water-based and hydrocarbon-based embedding media were evaluated, and petrolatum, commercially known as Vaseline, stood out for its performance in preserving C. elegans over time for LA-ICP-TOF-MS imaging. Worms were subjected to microscopy and LA-ICP-TOF-MS imaging where we achieved a 2-μm spatial resolution by oversampling laser shots during ablation. Quantitative elemental maps were obtained using gelatin standards sectioned at a 40-μm thickness to closely mimic the average tissue ablation depth of a day 1 adult C. elegans. This work established a comprehensive LA-ICP-TOF-MS imaging workflow for model organism C. elegans and addressed key analytical bottlenecks associated with sample handling, tissue preservation, spatial resolution, and quantitation in whole-organism elemental imaging of C. elegans. The methodology expands the analytical capabilities of LA-ICP-TOF-MS imaging for microscale biological systems and provides an adaptable workflow for future spatial metal biology research using C. elegans and other similar model systems.
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BibTeX
@article{reynolds2026onslide,
title = {{On-Slide Preparation of Caenorhabditis elegans toward Quantitative, High-Resolution LA-ICP-TOF Mass Spectrometry Imaging.}},
author = {Aidan J Reynolds and Aaron Sue and Keith MacRenaris and Thomas V O'Halloran and Tian Autumn Qiu},
journal = {Analytical chemistry},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1021/acs.analchem.6c04271},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42916391},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - On-Slide Preparation of Caenorhabditis elegans toward Quantitative, High-Resolution LA-ICP-TOF Mass Spectrometry Imaging.
AU - Aidan J Reynolds
AU - Aaron Sue
AU - Keith MacRenaris
AU - Thomas V O'Halloran
AU - Tian Autumn Qiu
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/01
JO - Analytical chemistry
DO - 10.1021/acs.analchem.6c04271
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42916391
AB - Metal homeostasis is essential for biological functions and has been implicated in many diseases. Laser ablation inductively coupled plasma time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-TOF-MS) imaging is a powerful tool for spatially resolved elemental imaging in heterogeneous tissues. The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) is a well-established model organism for metal biology research. However, there have been few reports on mass spectrometry-based metal imaging of C. elegans due to challenges in sample preparation for high-resolution and quantitative analysis. In this study, we established an integrated workflow consisting of sample preparation, imaging, and quantitative analysis for whole-animal elemental imaging of C. elegans by LA-ICP-TOF-MS. With the assistance of 3D-printed uniform layer media application tools (ULMATs), water-based and hydrocarbon-based embedding media were evaluated, and petrolatum, commercially known as Vaseline, stood out for its performance in preserving C. elegans over time for LA-ICP-TOF-MS imaging. Worms were subjected to microscopy and LA-ICP-TOF-MS imaging where we achieved a 2-μm spatial resolution by oversampling laser shots during ablation. Quantitative elemental maps were obtained using gelatin standards sectioned at a 40-μm thickness to closely mimic the average tissue ablation depth of a day 1 adult C. elegans. This work established a comprehensive LA-ICP-TOF-MS imaging workflow for model organism C. elegans and addressed key analytical bottlenecks associated with sample handling, tissue preservation, spatial resolution, and quantitation in whole-organism elemental imaging of C. elegans. The methodology expands the analytical capabilities of LA-ICP-TOF-MS imaging for microscale biological systems and provides an adaptable workflow for future spatial metal biology research using C. elegans and other similar model systems.
SN - 0003-2700
SN - 1520-6882
ER -