Imaging mass spectrometry analysis for follicular lymphoma grading.

Follicular lymphoma (FL) is the second most common non-Hodgkins lymphoma in the United States. While the current diagnosis depends heavily on the review of H&E-stained tissues, additional sources of information such as IHC are occasionally needed. Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS) can be used to generate protein profiles from localized tissue regions, thus making it possible to relate changes in tissue histology to the changes in the protein signature of the tissue.