Application of laser microdissection ICP–MS for high resolution elemental mapping in mouse brain tissue: A comparative study with laser ablation ICP–MS

•High resolution elemental images (6 µm) for native mouse brain tissue by LMD–ICP–MS.•Improvement of lateral resolution to 4 µm using uranium stained mouse brain tissue.•Quantification of iron, phosphorus and uranium in stained mouse brain tissue.•Comparison between LA- and LMD–ICP–MS techniques.

Mapping of elements in biological tissue by laser induced mass spectrometry is a fast growing analytical methodology in life sciences. This method provides a multitude of useful information of metal, nonmetal, metalloid and isotopic distribution at major, minor and trace concentration ranges, usually with a lateral resolution of 12–160 µm. Selected applications in medical research require an improved lateral resolution of laser induced mass spectrometric technique at the low micrometre scale and below. The present work demonstrates the applicability of a recently developed analytical methodology – laser microdissection associated to inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LMD ICP–MS) – to obtain elemental images of different solid biological samples at high lateral resolution. LMD ICP–MS images of mouse brain tissue samples stained with uranium and native are shown, and a direct comparison of LMD and laser ablation (LA) ICP–MS imaging methodologies, in terms of elemental quantification, is performed.

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