INVESTIGATION OF MACROMOLECULES IN WINES BY MATRIX-ASSISTED LASER-DESORPTION IONIZATION TIME-OF-FLIGHT MASS-SPECTROMETRY

Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) mass spectrometry was applied to the characterization of the protein content of wines, I t has been established that this technique is applicable for this purp ose even without sophisticated sample preparation, Direct structural i nformation-presence of glycoproteins-was obtained from the MALDI spect ra and was supported by an enzymatic degradation experiment, On the ba sis of the MALDI spectra it was possible to distinguish two different wines and a correlation was found between peak intensity ratios and th e time of harvest.