TY - JOUR A1 - Cruz-Alonso, M. A1 - Fernandez, B. A1 - Alvarez, L. A1 - Gonzalez-Iglesias, H. A1 - Traub, Heike A1 - Jakubowski, Norbert A1 - Pereiro, R. T1 - Bioimaging of metallothioneins in ocular tissue sections by laser ablation-ICP-MS using bioconjugated gold nanoclusters as specific tags JF - Microchimica Acta N2 - An immunohistochemical method is described to visualize the distribution of metallothioneins 1/2 (MT 1/2) and metallothionein 3 (MT 3) in human ocular tissue. It is making use of (a) antibodies conjugated to gold nanoclusters (AuNCs) acting as labels, and (b) laser ablation (LA) coupled to inductively coupled plasma – mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Water-soluble fluorescent AuNCs (with an average size of 2.7 nm) were synthesized and then conjugated to antibody by carbodiimide coupling. The surface of the modified AuNCs was then blocked with hydroxylamine to avoid nonspecific interactions with biological tissue. Immunoassays for MT 1/2 and MT 3 in ocular tissue sections (5 μm thick) from two post mortem human donors were performed. Imaging studies were then performed by fluorescence using confocal microscopy, and LA-ICP-MS was performed in the retina to measure the signal for gold. Signal amplification by the >500 gold atoms in each nanocluster allowed the antigens (MT 1/2 and MT 3) to be imaged by LA-ICP-MS using a laser spot size as small as 4 μm. The image patterns found in retina are in good agreement with those obtained by conventional fluorescence immunohistochemistry which was used as an established reference method. KW - Nanocluster KW - Immunohistochemistry KW - Laser ablation KW - ICP-MS KW - Fluorescence KW - Bioimaging PY - 2018 DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00604-017-2597-1 SN - 1436-5073 SN - 0026-3672 VL - 185 IS - 1 SP - 64 EP - 72 PB - Springer CY - Vienna AN - OPUS4-44637 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Pisonero, J. A1 - Bouzas-Ramos, D. A1 - Traub, Heike A1 - Cappella, Brunero A1 - Alvarez-Llamas, C. A1 - Richter, Silke A1 - Mayo, J. C. A1 - Costa-Fernandez, J. M. A1 - Bordel, N. A1 - Jakubowski, Norbert T1 - Critical evaluation of fast and highly resolved elemental distribution in single cells using LA-ICP-SFMS JF - Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry N2 - The analytical potential of a nanosecond laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ns-LA-ICP-SFMS) system, equipped with an ultra-fast wash-out ablation chamber, is critically investigated for fast and highly spatially resolved (∼μm) qualitative elemental distribution within single cells. Initially, a low surface roughness (< 10 nm) thin In–SnO2 layer (total coating thickness ∼200 nm) deposited on glass is employed to investigate the size, morphology and overlapping of laser-induced craters obtained at different laser repetition rates, making use of Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM). Conical craters with a surface diameter of about 2 µm and depths of about 100 nm were measured after a single laser shot. Furthermore, the influence of the sampling distance (i.e. distance between the sample surface and the inner sniffer of the ablation chamber) on the LA-ICP-MS ion signal wash-out time is evaluated. A significant decrease of the transient 120Sn+ ion signal is noticed after slight variations (±200 μm) around the optimum sampling position. Ultra-fast wash-outs (< 10 ms) are achieved reducing the aerosol mixing from consecutive laser shots even when operating the laser at high repetition rates (25 – 100 Hz). Fast and highly spatially resolved images of elemental distribution within mouse embryonic fibroblast cells (NIH/3T3 fibroblast cells) and human cervical carcinoma cells (HeLa cells), incubated with gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) and Cd-based quantum dots (QDs), respectively, are determined at the optimized operating conditions. Elemental distribution of Au and Cd in single cells is achieved using a high scanning speed (50 µm/s) and high repetition rate (100 Hz). The results obtained for the distribution of fluorescent Cd-based QDs within the HeLa cells are in good agreement with those obtained by confocal microscopy. The size, morphology and overlapping of laser-induced craters in the fixed cells are also investigated using AFM, observing conical craters with a surface diameter of about 2.5 µm and depths of about 800 nm after a single laser shot. KW - Laser ablation KW - ICP-MS KW - Nanoparticle KW - Atomic Force Microscopy KW - Cell PY - 2018 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/c8ja00096d SP - 1 EP - 9 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - Cambridge AN - OPUS4-45564 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Löhr, Konrad A1 - Traub, Heike A1 - Wanka, Antje Jutta A1 - Panne, Ulrich A1 - Jakubowski, Norbert T1 - Quantification of metals in single cells by LA-ICP-MS: Comparison of single spot analysis and imaging JF - Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry N2 - LA-ICP-MS is increasingly used for single cell analysis in two different detection modes using either the imaging mode with subcellular resolution or alternatively single spot analysis of cells with a larger laser spot size. This study compares the analytical figures of merit of both detection modes (signal to noise, precision, accuracy, throughput), as well as ease of operation and data evaluation. Adherent 3T3 fibroblast cells were stained with two metal dyes (mDOTA-Ho, Ir-DNA-intercalator) and several dozen cells were measured using both modes. We found a ten times higher throughput for single spot analysis, which has as well a straightforward data analysis, shortening the total analysis time further. The signal to noise ratio for single spot analysis was found to be slightly better compared to the signal to noise of pixels in imaging. The mean metal intensity per single cell differed by only 10% between both modes and obtained distributions were found to show no statistically significant differences. Using matrix matched calibration based on standards spotted onto nitrocellulose membrane, we achieved detection limits (10s) of 12 fg for Ir and 30 fg for Ho and quantified 57 +/-35 fg Ir and 1192 +/- 707 fg Ho per single cell. Compared to a conventional ICP-MS measurement of a digest of about 60000 cells, 54% of Ir content and 358% Ho content was found using quantitative LA-ICP-MS. The difference might be a consequence of the two metal dyes binding to different structures of the cell and therefore might behave differently in sample preparation for conventional and LA-ICP-MS. KW - Cells KW - Laser ablation KW - ICP-MS KW - Metals KW - Quantification PY - 2018 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/c8ja00191j SN - 0267-9477 VL - 33 IS - 9 SP - 1579 EP - 1587 PB - RSC Royal Society of Chemistry CY - London AN - OPUS4-46441 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - López-Serrano Oliver, Ana A1 - Baumgart, S. A1 - Bremser, Wolfram A1 - Flemig, Sabine A1 - Wittke, D. A1 - Grützkau, A. A1 - Luch, A. A1 - Haase, A. A1 - Jakubowski, Norbert T1 - Quantification of silver nanoparticles taken up by single cells using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry in the single cell measurement mode JF - Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry N2 - The impact of nanoparticles, NPs, at the single cell level has become a major field of toxicological research and different analytical methodologies are being investigated to obtain biological and toxicological information to better understand the mechanisms of cell–NP interactions. Here, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry in the single cell measurement mode (SC-ICP-MS) is proposed to study the uptake of silver NPs, AgNPs, with a diameter of 50 nm by human THP-1 monocytes in a proof-ofprinciple experiment. The main operating parameters of SC-ICP-MS have been optimized and applied for subsequent quantitative analysis of AgNPs to determine the number of particles in individual cells using AgNP suspensions for calibration. THP-1 cells were incubated with AgNP suspensions with concentrations of 0.1 and 1 µg/mL for 4 and 24 hours. The results reveal that the AgNP uptake by THP-1 monocytes is minimal at the lower dose of 0.1 µg/mL (roughly 1 AgNP per cell was determined), whereas a large cell-to-cell variance dependent on the exposure time is observed for a 10 times higher concentration (roughly 7 AgNPs per cell). The method was further applied to monitor the AgNP uptake by THP-1 cells differentiated macrophages incubated at the same AgNP concentration levels and exposure times demonstrating a much higher AgNP uptake (roughly from 9 to 45 AgNPs per cell) that was dependent on exposure concentration and remained constant over time. The results have been compared and validated by sample digestion followed by ICP-MS analysis as well as with other alternative promising techniques providing single cell analysis. KW - Silbernanopartikel KW - ICP-MS KW - Einzelzellanalyse PY - 2018 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/C7JA00395A SN - 0267-9477 VL - 33 IS - 7 SP - 1256 EP - 1263 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - London AN - OPUS4-45473 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Arakawa, Akihiro A1 - Jakubowski, Norbert A1 - Koellensperger, G. A1 - Theiner, S. A1 - Schweikert, A. A1 - Flemig, Sabine A1 - Iwahata, D. A1 - Traub, Heike A1 - Hirata, T. T1 - Quantitative Imaging of Silver Nanoparticles and Essential Elements in Thin Sections of Fibroblast Multicellular Spheroids by High Resolution Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry JF - Analytical Chemistry N2 - We applied high resolution laser ablation inductively coupled plasma time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-TOF-MS) with cellular spatial resolution for bioimaging of nanoparticles uptaken by fibroblast multicellular spheroids (MCS). This was used to quantitatively investigate interactions of silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) and the distributions of intrinsic minerals and biologically relevant elements within thin sections of a fibroblast MCS as a three-dimensional in vitro tissue model. We designed matrix-matched calibration standards for this purpose and printed them using a noncontact piezo-driven array spotter with a Ag NP suspension and multielement standards. The limits of detection for Ag, Mg, P, K, Mn, Fe, Co, Cu, and Zn were at the femtogram (fg) level, which is sufficient to investigate intrinsic minerals in thin MCS sections (20 μm thick). After incubation for 48 h, Ag NPs were enriched in the outer rim of the MCS but not detected in the core. The localization of Ag NPs was inhomogeneous in the outer rim, and they were colocalized with a single-cell-like structure visualized by Fe distribution (pixel size of elemental images: 5 × 0.5 μm). The quantitative value for the total mass of Ag NPs in a thin section by the present method agreed with that obtained by ICP-sector field (SF)-MS with a liquid mode after acid digestion. KW - Laser ablation KW - ICP-MS KW - Imaging KW - Nanoparticle KW - Cell KW - Spheroid PY - 2019 UR - https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.analchem.9b02239 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.analchem.9b02239 SN - 0003-2700 VL - 91 IS - 15 SP - 10197 EP - 10203 PB - American Chemical Society, ACS Publications CY - Washington D.C. AN - OPUS4-48719 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Lopez-Serrano Oliver, Ana A1 - Haase, A. A1 - Peddinghaus, A. A1 - Wittke, D. A1 - Jakubowski, Norbert A1 - Luch, A. A1 - Grützkau, A. A1 - Baumgart, S. T1 - Mass cytometry enabling absolute and fast quantification of silver nanoparticle uptake at the single cell level JF - Analytical Chemistry N2 - In the last decades, significant efforts have been made to investigate possible cytotoxic effects of metallic nanoparticles (NPs). Methodologies enabling precise information regarding uptake and intracellular distribution of NPs at the single cell level remain to be established. Mass cytometry (MC) has been developed for high-dimensional single cell analyses and is a promising tool to quantify NP−cell interactions. Here, we aim to establish a new MC-based quantification procedure to receive absolute numbers of NPs per single cell by using a calibration that considers the specific transmission efficiency (TE) of suspended NPs. The current MC-quantification strategy accept TE values of complementary metal solutions. In this study, we demonstrate the different transmission behavior of 50 nm silver NPs (AgNP) and silver nitrate solution. We have used identical AgNPs for calibration as for in vitro-differentiated macrophages (THP-1 cell line) in a time- and dose-dependent manner. Our quantification relies on silver intensities measuring AgNPs in the same detection mode as the cells. Results were comparable with the TE quantification strategy using AgNPs but differed when using ionic silver. Furthermore, intact and digested cell aliquots were measured to investigate the impact of MC sample processing on the amount of AgNPs/cell. Taken together, we have provided a MC-specific calibration procedure to precisely calculate absolute numbers of NPs per single cell. Combined with its unique feature of multiplexing up to 50 parameters, MC provides much more information on the single cell level than single cell-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (SC-ICP-MS) and, therefore, offers new opportunities in nanotoxicology. KW - ICP-MS KW - Nanoparticle KW - Cell KW - SC-ICP-MS KW - Mass cytometry PY - 2019 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.analchem.9b01870 SN - 0003-2700 SN - 1520-6882 VL - 91 IS - 18 SP - 11514 EP - 11519 PB - American Chemical Society (ACS Publications) CY - Washington AN - OPUS4-48986 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Arakawa, Akihiro A1 - Jakubowski, Norbert A1 - Koellensperger, G. A1 - Theiner, S. A1 - Schweikert, A. A1 - Flemig, Sabine A1 - Iwahata, D. A1 - Traub, Heike A1 - Hirata, T. T1 - Imaging of Ag NP transport through collagen-rich microstructures in fibroblast multicellular spheroids by high-resolution laser ablation inductively coupled plasma time-of-flight mass spectrometry JF - Analyst N2 - We investigated the penetration of silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) into a three-dimensional in vitro tissue analog using NPs with various sizes and surface coatings, and with different incubation times. A high-Resolution laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) time-of-flight (TOF) instrument was applied for imaging the distributions of elements in thin sample sections (20 μm thick). A fibroblast multicellular spheroid (MCS) was selected as the model system and cultured for more than 8 days to produce a natural barrier formed by the extracellular matrix containing collagen. The MCS was then exposed for up to 48 h to one of four types of Ag NPs (∅ 5 nm citrate coated, ∅ 20 nm citrate coated, ∅ 20 nm polyvinylpyrrolidone coated, and ∅ 50 nm citrate coated). Imaging showed that the penetration pathway was strongly related to steric networks formed by collagen fibrils, and Ag NPs with a hydrodynamic diameter of more than 41 nm were completely trapped in an outer rim of the MCSs even after incubation for 48 h. In addition, we examined the impact of these NPs on essential elements (P, Fe, Cu, and Zn) in areas of Ag NP accumulation. We observed a linear increase at the sub-femtogram level in the total concentration of Cu (fg per pixel) in samples treated with small or large Ag NPs (∅ 5 nm or ∅ 50 nm) for 48 h. KW - Nanoparticle KW - Laser ablation KW - ICP-MS KW - Imaging KW - Cell PY - 2019 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/c9an00856j SN - 0003-2654 VL - 144 IS - 16 SP - 4935 EP - 4942 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry RSC CY - Cambridge AN - OPUS4-48531 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Hendriks, L. A1 - Ramkorun-Schmidt, Benita A1 - Grundlach-Graham, A. A1 - Koch, J. A1 - Grass, R. N. A1 - Jakubowski, Norbert A1 - Günther, D. T1 - Single-particle ICP-MS with online microdroplet calibration: toward matrix independent nanoparticle sizing JF - Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry N2 - Single-particle inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (sp-ICP-MS) has become an effective tool for the detection and quantification of inorganic nanoparticles (NPs). While sizing of NPs suspended in water is relatively straightforward by sp-ICP-MS, accurate mass quantification of NPs in complex media, such as consumer products and natural systems still remains a challenge. When NPs are suspended in a complex medium, the matrix may affect the analyte sensitivity and lead to inaccurate NP sizing. Here, we investigate the use of an online microdroplet calibration system to size NPs in a single step. In this setup, microdroplets—which are used as the calibrant to determine elemental sensitivities—and nebulized NP-containing solutions are introduced concurrently into the ICP via a dual-inlet sample introduction system. Because calibrant microdroplets and analyte NPs experience the same plasma conditions, both the microdroplets and the NPs are subjected to the same matrix-related signal enhancement or suppression. In this way, the microdroplet calibration standards are automatically matrix matched with the NP-containing solution. The online microdroplet calibration system is combined with an ICP-TOFMS instrument for simultaneous measurement of multiple elements in microdroplets and NPs. We investigate the ability of online microdroplet calibration to compensate for matrix effects through a series of experiments, in which Ag and Au NPs are measured with variable plasma-sampling positions, varying concentrations of HCl and HNO3, varying concentrations of single element solutions, and high concentrations of a salt matrix, i.e. phosphate buffered saline (PBS). Through these experiments, we demonstrate that the online microdroplet calibration strategy provides a matrix-independent mass quantification of analyte NPs in the presence of several established types of matrix effects, including acid effects, space-charge effects, and ionisation suppression. In results presented here, we focus on the size determination of the NPs. KW - Nanoparticle KW - ICP-MS KW - Calibration PY - 2019 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-477589 DO - https://doi.org/10.1039/c8ja00397a SN - 0267-9477 VL - 34 IS - 4 SP - 716 EP - 728 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - London AN - OPUS4-47758 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Arakawa, Akihiro A1 - Jakubowski, Norbert A1 - Flemig, Sabine A1 - Koellensperger, G. A1 - Rusz, M. A1 - Iwahata, D. A1 - Traub, Heike A1 - Hirata, T. T1 - High-resolution laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry used to study transport of metallic nanoparticles through collagen-rich microstructures in fibroblast multicellular spheroids JF - Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry N2 - We have efficiently produced collagen-rich microstructures in fibroblast multicellular spheroids (MCSs) as a three-dimensional in vitro tissue analog to investigate silver (Ag) nanoparticle (NP) penetration. The MCS production was examined by changing the seeding cell number (500 to 40,000 cells) and the growth period (1 to 10 days). MCSs were incubated with Ag NP suspensions with a concentration of 5 μg/mL for 24 h. For this study, laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) was used to visualize Ag NP localization quantitatively. Thin sections of MCSs were analyzed by LA-ICP-MS with a laser spot size of 8 μm to image distributions of 109Ag, 31P, 63Cu, 66Zn, and 79Br. A calibration using a NP suspension was applied to convert the measured Ag intensity into the number of NPs present. The determined numbers of NPs ranged from 30 to 7200 particles in an outer rim of MCS. The particle distribution was clearly correlated with the presence of 31P and 66Zn and was localized in the outer rim of proliferating cells with a width that was equal to about twice the diameter of single cells. Moreover, abundant collagens were found in the outer rim of MCSs. For only the highest seeding cell number, NPs were completely captured at the outer rim, in a natural barrier reducing particle transport, whereas Eosin (79Br) used as a probe of small molecules penetrated into the core of MCSs already after 1 min of exposure. KW - Laser ablation KW - ICP-MS KW - Nanoparticle KW - Cell KW - Speroid PY - 2019 DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-019-01827-w SN - 1618-2642 SN - 1618-2650 VL - 411 IS - 16 SP - 3497 EP - 3506 PB - Springer CY - Berlin, Heidelberg AN - OPUS4-47900 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Löhr, Konrad A1 - Borovinskaya, O. A1 - Tourniaire, G. A1 - Panne, Ulrich A1 - Jakubowski, Norbert T1 - Arraying of single cells for quantitative high throughput laser ablation ICP-TOF-MS JF - Analytical Chemistry N2 - Arraying of single cells for mass spectrometric analysis is a considerable bioanalytical challenge. In this study, we employ a novel single cell arraying technology for quantitative analysis and isotopic fingerprinting by laser ablation inductively coupled plasma time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-TOF-MS). The single cell arraying approach is based on a piezo-acoustic microarrayer with software for automated optical detection of cells within the piezo dispense capillary (PDC) prior to arraying. Using optimized parameters, single cell occupancy of >99%, high throughput (up to 550 cells per hour), and a high cell recovery of >66% is achieved. LA-ICP-TOF-MS is employed to detect naturally occurring isotopes in the whole mass range as fingerprints of individual cells. Moreover, precise quantitative determination of metal-containing cell dyes is possible down to contents of ∼100 ag using calibration standards which were produced using the same arrayer. KW - Laser ablation KW - Cell KW - Array KW - ICP-MS PY - 2019 DO - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.analchem.9b00198 SN - 0003-2700 SN - 1520-6882 VL - 91 IS - 18 SP - 11520 EP - 11528 PB - American Chemical Society (ACS Publications) CY - Washington AN - OPUS4-48985 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -