Selective ablation of biological tissue and single cells on a glass substrate by controlling the laser energy density of nanosecond 193 nm laser radiation

Author(s)

Van Acker, Thibaut ^[1] ; Van Malderen, Stijn J. M. ^{[1, 2]} ; Colina-Vegas, Legna ^[3] ; Ramachandran, Ranjith K. ^[4] ; Vanhaecke, Frank ^[1]

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Ghent, Dept Chem, Atom & Mass Spectrometry A&MS Res Unit, Campus Sterre, Krijgslaan 281-512, B-9000 Ghent - Belgium

^[2] Univ Ghent, Dept Chem, Xray Microspect & Imaging XMI Res Unit, Campus Sterre, Krijgslaan 281-512, B-9000 Ghent - Belgium

^[3] Univ Fed Sao Carlos, Dept Chem, Km 235, Sao Carlos, SP - Brazil

^[4] Univ Ghent, Dept Solid State Sci, COCOON, Campus Sterre, Krijgslaan 281-S1, B-9000 Ghent - Belgium

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry; v. 34, n. 10, p. 1957-1964, OCT 1 2019.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

This paper describes the possibility of controlling and reducing the laser energy density of nanosecond 193 nm laser radiation in order to selectively ablate biological material from a glass substrate for LA-ICP-MS bioimaging applications. Atomic force microscopy and optical profilometry were used to study the shape of single-shot craters in dried gelatin droplets, ablated at low energy (<500 mJ cm(-2)). These craters were characterized by straight walls and a `flat bottom'. Based on the ablated volume per pulse and corresponding ablation depth, the ablation threshold of the dried gelatin material was estimated at 44 mJ cm(-2) by relying on the Beer model derived from the Beer-Lambert law. Three different glass substrates, i.e. a microscope slide and coverslip of soda-lime-silica (SLS) glass with a slightly different bulk elemental composition and a borosilicate glass coverslip, were ablated using laser energy densities ranging from 150-730 mJ cm(-2) and typical instrument settings applied during LA-ICP-MS bioimaging. The signal intensity of Si-29, a minor isotope of Si which is a major matrix component of the glass surface, was monitored as a measure of material removal and was used to estimate ablation thresholds for the three glass substrates at 262, 181 and 104 mJ cm(-2), respectively. As a proof-of-concept, kidney tissue mounted onto a SLS glass microscope slide substrate and MDA-MB-231 tumor cells seeded on a SLS glass coverslip were selectively ablated by controlling the laser energy density to ensure soft ablation of the glass substrate, but provide hard ablation of the biological material. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 17/23254-9 - Quantitative determination and cellular imaging of Cu, Ru and Pt in single cells using Laser Ablation-ICP-Mass Spectrometry
• Grantee: Legna Andreina Colina Vegas
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Post-doctor