Plant spatial omics initiated by mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) is a label-free analytical technology to simultaneously determine the spatial localization and distribution patterns of endogenous molecules (e.g., proteins, peptides, lipids, and metabolites) directly from the surfaces of thinly cut plant tissue sections. MSI is becoming a well-established tool in plant research and provides distinct advantages in terms of high sensitivity, high throughput, and molecular specificity derived from the use of high-resolution mass spectrometers to detect multiple ionized biomolecules in situ at the tissue or cell levels of plant organism. The characterization of structure and spatial information of endogenous molecules in plants is very important to better understand plant development, growth and plant-environment interactions under normal or stressed physiological conditions. Therefore, MSI has drawn more and more attention and is being widely applied to diverse areas of plant science, such as plant physiology, pathology, biotic/abiotic stress resistance, genetics, breeding, plant-microbe/insect interaction, and so on. Further improvements in high-resolution 2D- and 3D-MSI and the developments of single-cell MSI will enhance the overall performance of MSI used in plant science.
The goal of this Research Topic is to present fundamental and applied studies of various MSI, including matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization MSI (MALDI-MSI), desorption electrospray ionization MSI (DESI-MSI), secondary ion MS (SIMS) imaging, and other derivatized MSI techniques, in plant science to be devoted to the dissemination of new and original knowledge in MSI-driven plant spatial omics. Despite the enormous progress that has been made, there are still challenges in MSI to characterize endogenous compounds in plants due to cell structural limitations, e.g., plant cuticles, epicuticular waxes, and cell walls. Therefore, we encourage authors to submit manuscripts on the studies that use advanced MSI-based plant spatial omics and on plant single-cell MSI technologies that seek to advance our understanding of fundamental processes in plant biology.
We welcome submissions of different types of manuscripts, including Original Research papers, Methods, Reviews / Mini-Reviews, Commentary, Opinions, and Perspectives on the following MSI-based plant subtopics but are not limited to:
• Novel methods of MSI development for gaining new biological insight into plant spatial omics
• Comprehensive characterization of endogenous and xenobiotic compounds in different plant organs such as roots, stems, leaves, flowers, fruits, and seeds
• Plant physiology
• Plant pathology
• Plant biotic/abiotic stress resistance
• Plant genetics and breeding
• Plant and microbe/insect interaction
• Medicinal plants
• Marine plants
Plant spatial omics initiated by mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) is a label-free analytical technology to simultaneously determine the spatial localization and distribution patterns of endogenous molecules (e.g., proteins, peptides, lipids, and metabolites) directly from the surfaces of thinly cut plant tissue sections. MSI is becoming a well-established tool in plant research and provides distinct advantages in terms of high sensitivity, high throughput, and molecular specificity derived from the use of high-resolution mass spectrometers to detect multiple ionized biomolecules in situ at the tissue or cell levels of plant organism. The characterization of structure and spatial information of endogenous molecules in plants is very important to better understand plant development, growth and plant-environment interactions under normal or stressed physiological conditions. Therefore, MSI has drawn more and more attention and is being widely applied to diverse areas of plant science, such as plant physiology, pathology, biotic/abiotic stress resistance, genetics, breeding, plant-microbe/insect interaction, and so on. Further improvements in high-resolution 2D- and 3D-MSI and the developments of single-cell MSI will enhance the overall performance of MSI used in plant science.
The goal of this Research Topic is to present fundamental and applied studies of various MSI, including matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization MSI (MALDI-MSI), desorption electrospray ionization MSI (DESI-MSI), secondary ion MS (SIMS) imaging, and other derivatized MSI techniques, in plant science to be devoted to the dissemination of new and original knowledge in MSI-driven plant spatial omics. Despite the enormous progress that has been made, there are still challenges in MSI to characterize endogenous compounds in plants due to cell structural limitations, e.g., plant cuticles, epicuticular waxes, and cell walls. Therefore, we encourage authors to submit manuscripts on the studies that use advanced MSI-based plant spatial omics and on plant single-cell MSI technologies that seek to advance our understanding of fundamental processes in plant biology.
We welcome submissions of different types of manuscripts, including Original Research papers, Methods, Reviews / Mini-Reviews, Commentary, Opinions, and Perspectives on the following MSI-based plant subtopics but are not limited to:
• Novel methods of MSI development for gaining new biological insight into plant spatial omics
• Comprehensive characterization of endogenous and xenobiotic compounds in different plant organs such as roots, stems, leaves, flowers, fruits, and seeds
• Plant physiology
• Plant pathology
• Plant biotic/abiotic stress resistance
• Plant genetics and breeding
• Plant and microbe/insect interaction
• Medicinal plants
• Marine plants
