October 1999 Meeting Announcement, Delaware Valley Mass Spectrometry Discussion Group

• Topic: "Novel Mass-Based Approaches for Probing Viral Structure and Performing Biomolecule Analysis"

• Speaker: Dr. Gary Siuzdak, Scripps Research Institute

• Date: Monday, October 11, 1999. 7:00 PM

• Time: Social Hour: 7:00 PM.
  Talk: 7:30 PM.

• Place: Merck, West Point, 37 Auditorium

• Abstract: Viruses - Virus particles are stable yet exhibit highly dynamic characteristics throughout their life cycle. Because these dynamic properties can only be inferred from the X-ray structure, new methods that are sensitive to viral capsid mobility must be developed. In the past, we have found MALDI-MS with time resolved limited proteolysis to be a sensitive indicator of viral capsid dynamics, and more recently we have used LC/MS to further probe the effect of drugs on capsid mobility. These experiments demonstrate that MALDI and LC/MS can be used to quantitatively examine tryptic digestion rates (both inhibition and acceleration) by measuring the product peptides as a function of drugs complexing the virus. We have also designed a new class of drugs to inactivate viruses based on these findings.

  DIOS - A new ionization strategy for biomolecular mass spectrometry has been developed based on pulsed laser desorption/ionization from porous silicon surfaces. Desorption/ionization on silicon (DIOS) uses silicon to trap analytes deposited on the surface and laser radiation to vaporize and ionize these molecules. DIOS is demonstrated for biomolecules with little or no fragmentation, in contrast to what is typically observed with other direct desorption/ionization approaches. The ability to perform these measurements without a matrix also makes it more amenable to small molecule analysis. The ease of chemically and structurally modifying silicon has also been used to optimize the ionization characteristics of the surface for biomolecular applications. Overall, desorption/ionization on silicon permits analysis of a wide range of molecules with good sensitivity and a potential for automation, as well as compatibility with microfluidics and microchip technology on silicon.

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