TY - GEN A1 - Weidner, Steffen T1 - Multivariate statistics applied to MALDI-TOF MS data of pollen samples N2 - Pollen represent one major cause for human allergic diseases. Currently the characterization and identification of pollen is time-consuming since it mainly relies on the microscopic determination of the genus-specific pollen morphology. A variety of new analytical approaches, like Raman - and fluorescence spectroscopy have been proposed in order to develop fast and reliable pollen identification. Recently matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) was initially applied for the rapid investigation of such complex biological samples. Taxonomic differences and relations of single pollen grains could be identified. Both commercially available lyophilized pollen and fresh pollen acquired from biological samples collected in parks and in the Botanical Garden Berlin in the years 2013-2015 were investigated. The samples were prepared by formic acid extraction in the gas phase and spotted with HCCA matrix. A variety of new approaches, like a newly developed MALDI target with micrometer sample spots sizes, were tested for their suitability. The obtained mass spectral data were investigated by principal component analysis (PCA). The applicability of MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry for the classification of pollen according to their taxonomic relationships was proven. Specifically, chemical differences in the mass spectra at the levels of plant order, genus and in many cases even of species could be identified. Based on these results, further investigations have been undertaken to optimize the sample preparation for the classification of single pollen grains in mixtures of pollens. A novel MALDI-target design was developed to enhance the phenotypic information of pollens in their mass spectra. The combination of mass spectral patterns and multivariate statistics provide a powerful tool for the investigation of structural correlations within mixtures. The results can be used to improve the reconstruction of taxonomic relations of single species in various mixtures and might be useful for the development of a fast routine method to identify pollen based on mass spectrometry. T2 - 64th ASMS Conference on Mass Spectrometry and Allied Topics CY - San Antonio, TX, USA DA - 05.06.2016 KW - Pollen KW - MALDI-TOF Mass Spectrometry KW - Multivariate statistics PY - 2016 UR - https://opus4.kobv.de/opus4-bam/frontdoor/index/index/docId/36837 AN - OPUS4-36837 AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany