MALDI in-source decay mass spectrometry of polyamidoamine dendrimers

Mass spectrometry of dendrimers

Mass spectrometry (MS) has become an essential technique to characterize dendrimers as it proved efficient at tackling analytical challenges raised by their peculiar onion-like structure. Owing to their chemical diversity, this review covers benefits of MS methods as a function of dendrimer classes, discussing advantages and limitations of ionization techniques, tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) strategies to determine the structure of defective species, as well as most recently demonstrated capabilities of ion mobility spectrometry (IMS) in the field. Complementarily, the well-defined structure of these macromolecules offers major advantages in the development of MS-based method, as reported in a second section reviewing uses of dendrimers as MS and IMS calibration standards and as multifunctional charge inversion reagents in gas phase ion/ion reactions.

Synthesis of Stimuli-Responsive Heterofunctional Dendrimer by Passerini Multicomponent Reaction

We report the synthesis of a structurally diverse amphiphilic dendrimer with oxidation and ultraviolet light-sensitive groups incorporated in the dendrimer interior. Convergent synthesis is utilized by reacting branched repeating units with a nonbranched functional molecule by two synthetic strategies, Passerini multicomponent reaction and azide-alkyne cycloaddition reaction. The periphery of dendrimer was functionalized by methoxy poly(ethylene glycol) to obtain a dendrimer with a hydrophobic core and hydrophilic peripheral chains. The G2-PEG dendrimer characterized by NMR, GPC, and MALDI-TOF MS for structural integrity and oxidation- and photo-triggered degradations of the G2-PEG dendrimer was investigated. The self-assembled morphology of the dendrimer in the presence of organic dye was also investigated by TEM and DLS analyses, together with dissipative particle dynamics simulation. The encapsulation of dye molecules in self-assembled nanospheres of the dendrimer and their responsive releases, triggered by the efficient disassembly of a dendrimer, have been demonstrated.

Quantitative analysis of polyhexamethylene guanidine (PHMG) oligomers via matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry with an ionic-liquid matrix

RATIONALE

Quantifying polymers by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOFMS) with a conventional crystalline matrix generally suffers from poor sample-to-sample or shot-to-shot reproducibility. An ionic-liquid matrix has been demonstrated to mitigate these reproducibility issues by providing a homogeneous sample surface, which is useful for quantifying polymers. In the present study, we evaluated the use of an ionic liquid matrix, i.e., 1-methylimidazolium α-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate (1-MeIm-CHCA), to quantify polyhexamethylene guanidine (PHMG) samples that impose a critical health hazard when inhaled in the form of droplets.

METHODS

MALDI-TOF mass spectra were acquired for PHMG oligomers using a variety of ionic-liquid matrices including 1-MeIm-CHCA. Calibration curves were constructed by plotting the sum of the PHMG oligomer peak areas versus PHMG sample concentration with a variety of peptide internal standards.

RESULTS

Compared with the conventional crystalline matrix, the 1-MeIm-CHCA ionic-liquid matrix had much better reproducibility (lower standard deviations). Furthermore, by using an internal peptide standard, good linear calibration plots could be obtained over a range of PMHG concentrations of at least 4 orders of magnitude.

CONCLUSIONS

This study successfully demonstrated that PHMG samples can be quantitatively characterized by MALDI-TOFMS with an ionic-liquid matrix and an internal standard.

Tandem mass spectrometric analysis of isosorbide-1,4-cyclohexane-dicarboxylic acid polyester oligomer cations using ion-trap mass spectrometry

RATIONALE

Isosorbide is a promising biomass-derived molecule that can be used as a replacement for fossil resource-derived diol monomers used in polyester synthesis. Due to its increased use in sustainable development, it is useful to understand the tandem mass spectrometric (MS/MS) fragmentation pathways of the isosorbide-based copolymer as an aid to interpreting the MS/MS spectra of other isosorbide-containing copolymers.

METHODS

Collision-activated dissociation (CAD) experiments were performed on the sodiated/protonated molecules, [(AB)(n)A+Na(or H)](+), n = 2-5, of isosorbide (A)-1,4-cyclohexanedicarboxylic acid (B) oligomers formed by ion-trap electrospray ionization (ESI).

RESULTS

Product ions arose from cleavage of the bonds between isosorbide and 1,4-cyclohexanedicarboxylic acid. In the MS/MS spectra, f(n)'' product ions were most abundant, followed by e(n) ions. McLafferty rearrangement appeared to provide the most facile pathway to yield the abundant f(n)'' and e(n) ions. In addition, a(n), b(n)'', f(n)''u(n)'', and en (+) ions were observed. Inductive cleavage and β-elimination were suggested to be the pathways involved in generating e(n)(+)- and e(n)/b(n)''-type ions, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

Based on the obtained CAD spectra, the alternating sequences of two copolymer building blocks, A and B, were unambiguously determined. The fragmentation pathways leading to the observed product ion types were also established.