Analysis of Carbohydrates by Mass Spectrometry

Mass spectrometry has become the favorite technique for glycomics analysis. This chapter describes the different ionization methods and provides examples of application, with comprehensive literature references. Mass fragmentation of monosaccharide and oligosaccharide derivatives will be discussed. The glycan compositions are usually determined based on accurate masses and tandem mass spectrometry. The coupling of modern separation techniques directly to the mass spectrometer, together with automated tools for interpretation of the MS data using database searching, are common techniques nowadays.