Mass spectrometry has become a powerful tool in the field of biomedicine. The combination of ambient ionization and miniature mass spectrometry systems could most likely fulfill a significant need in medical diagnostics, providing highly specific molecular information in real time for clinical and even point-of-care analysis. In this review, we discuss the recent development of ambient ionization and miniature mass spectrometers as well as their potential in disease diagnosis and therapeutic monitoring, with an emphasis on their capability in analysis of biofluids and tissues. We also speculate the future development of the integrated, miniature MS systems and provide our perspectives on the challenges in technical development as well as possible solutions for path forward.
Keywords: Ambient ionization; Biofluid analysis; Direct sampling; Mass spectrometry imaging.; Miniature mass spectrometer.