Microscopy-Based Mass Measurement of a Single Whole Virus in a Cylindrical Ion Trap

摘要

Measuring the mass of a single whole virus is a technological challenge in the field ofmass spectrometry.[1] The measurement is also important because knowing the masses of individual virus particles and the mass variability of each population is essential for the development of concepts about the structure and nature of these genetically diverse agents. Recent studies show that viruses are the most abundant biological entities in the world's oceans and are second to prokaryotes in terms of biomass on the planet.[2] It is thus timely and of interest to develop mass spectrometry of whole viruses to expand our understanding of the simplest “life forms”.