- Schenkel, T;
- Snijders, AM;
- Nakamura, K;
- Seidl, PA;
- Mak, B;
- Obst-Huebl, L;
- Knobel, H;
- Pong, I;
- Persaud, A;
- van Tilborg, J;
- Ostermayr, T;
- Steinke, S;
- Blakely, EA;
- Ji, Q;
- Javey, A;
- Kapadia, R;
- Geddes, CGR;
- Esarey, E
Nanostructured surfaces enhance ion yields in matrix-assisted laser desorption-ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS). The spike protein complex, S1, is one fingerprint signature of Sars-CoV-2 with a mass of 75 kDa. Here, we show that MALDI-MS yields of Sars-CoV-2 spike protein ions in the 100 kDa range are enhanced 50-fold when the matrix-analyte solution is placed on substrates that are coated with a dense forest of multi-walled carbon nanotubes, compared to yields from uncoated substrates. Nanostructured substrates can support the development of mass spectrometry techniques for sensitive pathogen detection and environmental monitoring.