Establishment of novel innovative bioimaging techniques of metals by laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) for diagnosis of liver damage

Objective: Hereditary disorders associated with metal overload or unwanted toxic accumulation of heavy metals can lead to high morbidity and mortality. Patients with hereditary hemochromatosis or Wilson disease for example may develop severe hepatic pathology including fibrosis, cirrhosis or even heptocellular carcinoma [1, 2]. While relevant disease genes are identified and genetic testing is applicable, liver biopsy in combination with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) is still applied for accurate diagnostic assessment of metal deposits and storage disorders in liver. Conversely, several metals are n…