Analysis of phospolipids and glycolipids by thin-layer chromatography–matrix-assisted laser desorption and ionization mass spectrometry

Thin-layer chromatography–matrix-assisted laser desorption and ionization mass spectrometry (TLC–MALDI-MS) of organic extracts from biological samples allows untargeted analysis and structural characterization of phospholipids and glycolipids ionized from the near-surface region of a sample separated on a TLC-plate. In particular, MALDI-MS enables the sensitive detection of many analytes directly from the solid surface of an ordinary TLC-plate even without previous staining. It will be shown that the detailed fatty acyl composition of phospholipids can be determined solely by TLC–MALDI-MS without previous derivatization, enzymatic cleavage and/or reversed phase separation. MALDI-time-of-flight (TOF) MS is thus a powerful method in this field due to its high sensitivity, low extent of induced fragmentation and simple, user-friendly performance. This review summarizes the so far available knowledge about combined TLC–MALDI-MS for phospholipid and glycolipid characterization together with the technical workflow and a survey of applications. Finally a perspective on the future of TLC–MALDI-MS is given.

► Certain lipid species are increasingly considered to be of therapeutic value.
► Separation is an important prerequisite for successful lipid analysis.
► As MALDI-MS makes use of a solid sample combined TLC–MALDI-MS seems straightforward.
► Useful TLC/MALDI-MS matrices and application methods are discussed.
► Phospholipids and glycolipids can be successfully analyzed by TLC/MALDI-MS.