MALDI imaging and in-source decay for top-down characterization of glioblastoma.

Glioblastoma multiforme is one of the most common intracranial tumors encountered in adults. This tumor of very poor prognosis is associated with a median survival rate of approximately 14 months. One of the major issues to better understand the biology of these tumors and to optimize the therapy is to obtain the molecular structure of glioblastoma. MALDI molecular imaging enables location of molecules in tissues without labeling. However, molecular identification in situ is not an easy task. In this paper, we used MALDI imaging coupled to in-source decay to characterize markers of this pathology. We provided MALDI molecular images up to 30 µm spatial resolution of mouse brain tissue sections. MALDI images showed the heterogeneity of the glioblastoma. In the various zones and at various development stages of the tumor, using our top-down strategy, we identified several proteins. These proteins play key roles in tumorigenesis. Particular attention was given to the necrotic area with characterization of hemorrhage, one of the most important poor prognosis factors in glioblastoma.

Protein Characterization by MALDI In-Source Decay Mass Spectrometry in Support of Safety Assessments of Genetically Modified Crops.

The advancement of mass spectrometry provides advantages for transgenic protein characterization in support of safety assessments of genetically modified crops. Here, we describe how matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization in-source decay (ISD) mass spectrometry (MS) in combination with intact mass and bottom-up analyses can be applied to achieve high confidence in the sequences of transgenic proteins expressed in plants and establish the biochemical equivalence of microbially produced protein surrogates. ISD confirmed 40-60 near terminal residues regardless of the protein size, including the improvement of the coverage of cysteine-rich proteins by the reduction/alkylation of disulfide bonds. Negative ISD significantly improved spectral quality and sequence coverage of acidic proteins. Various post-translational modifications, such as terminal truncations and N-terminal methionine excision and acetylation, were identified in plant-produced proteins by top-down MS. Finally, we demonstrated that a combination of top-down and bottom-up analyses provides high confidence in sequence equivalence of plant and microbially produced proteins.

Matrix effect on in-source decay products of peptides in matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization.

MALDI-ISD of peptides were studied using several salicylic acid derivatives, 2,5-dihydroxybenzoic acid (2,5-DHB), 5-aminosalicylic acid (5-ASA), 5-formylsalicylic acid (5-FSA), and 5-nitrosalicylic acid (5-NSA) as matrices. The difference in the nature of the functional group at the 5-position in the salicylic acid derivatives can dramatically affect the ISD products. The use of 2,5-DHB and 5-ASA leads to "hydrogen-abundant" peptide radicals and subsequent radical-induced N-Cα bonds cleavage. N-Cα bond cleavage gave a c'/z (·) fragment pair and radical z (·)-series fragments gain a hydrogen radical or react with a matrix radical. In contrast, the use of 5-NSA resulted in the production of a "hydrogen-deficient" peptide radical that contained a radical site on the amide nitrogen in the peptide backbone. Subsequently, the radical site on the amide nitrogen induces Cα-C bond dissociation, leading to a (·)/x fragment pair. The a (·)-series ions undergo further hydrogen abstraction to form a-series ions after Cα-C bond cleavage. Since the Pro residue does not contain a nitrogen-centered radical site, Cα-C bond cleavage does not occur. Alternatively, the specific cleavage of CO-N bonds leads to a b (·)/y fragment pair at Xxx-Pro which occurs via hydrogen abstraction from the Cα-H in the Pro residue. The use of 5-FSA generated both a (·)/x- and c'/z (·)-series fragment pairs. An oxidizing matrix provides useful complementary information in MALDI-ISD compared to a reducing matrix for the analysis of amino acid sequencing and site localization in cases of phosphopeptides. MALDI-ISD, when used in conjunction with both reducing and oxidizing matrices is a potentially useful method for de novo peptide sequencing.