Mass spectrometry-based tag and its application to high efficient peptide analysis – A review

•The recent reported tags for high efficiency analysis of peptides by mass spectrometry are reviewed.•These tags are categorized based on their target reactive groups on peptides.•Tags for analysis of post-translational modifications have been included.•A brief introduction of their applications for peptide analysis is presented.

Chemical derivatization is a very promising technique for improving analysis of peptides by mass spectrometry (MS). Thereinto, development of novel tags compatible with MS and/or MS/MS has always been the focus point of study. In this review, the recent reported tags for derivatization of thiol groups of cysteine, carboxyl groups, and amino groups on peptides as well as peptides with post-translational modifications (PTMs) are summarized. Moreover, the tags used for derivatization of glycans or oligosaccharides released from glycoproteins are also reviewed.

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