Understanding the fate of nanoscale particles (NPs) in biological systems is significant with the increasing risk for human exposure. Recent research endeavors in laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry imaging (LDI-MSI) have enriched the toolbox for evaluation of NPs' behavior in biological tissues, especially in aspects including sub-organ bio-distribution, clearance, quantification and surface chemistry variation analysis. In recognition of the potential for advancement in LDI MSI, this concept provides a brief overview of recent research works in LDI MSI for NPs, illustrates new applications that demonstrate the superiority of this technique, and highlights a series of perspectives and directions to move the field forward.
Keywords: biological systems; laser desorption; mass spectrometry imaging; nanoscale particles.
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