Versatile lipid profiling by liquid chromatography–high resolution mass spectrometry using all ion fragmentation and polarity switching. Preliminary application for serum samples phenotyping related to canine mammary cancer

• Lipidomics, high resolution mass spectrometry, polarity switching, serum, canine mammary cancer.

Lipids represent an extended class of substances characterized by such high variety and complexity that makes their unified analyses by liquid chromatography coupled to either high resolution or tandem mass spectrometry (LC–HRMS or LC–MS/MS) a real challenge. In the present study, a new versatile methodology associating ultra high performance liquid chromatography coupled to high resolution tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC–HRMS/MS) have been developed for a comprehensive analysis of lipids. The use of polarity switching and “all ion fragmentation” (AIF) have been two action levels particularly exploited to finally permit the detection and identification of a multi-class and multi-analyte extended range of lipids in a single run. For identification purposes, both higher energy collision dissociation (HCD) and in-source CID (collision induced dissociation) fragmentation were evaluated in order to obtain information about the precursor and product ions in the same spectra. This approach provides both class-specific and lipid-specific fragments, enhancing lipid identification. Finally, the developed method was applied for differential phenotyping of serum samples collected from pet dogs developing spontaneous malignant mammary tumors and health controls. A biological signature associated with the presence of cancer was then successfully revealed from this lipidome analysis, which required to be further investigated and confirmed at larger scale.

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