Fully Automated Workflow for Integrated Sample Digestion and Evotip Loading Enabling High-Throughput Clinical Proteomics.

Protein identification and quantification is an important tool for biomarker discovery. With the increased sensitivity and speed of modern mass spectrometers, sample preparation remains a bottleneck for studying large cohorts. To address this issue, we prepared and evaluated a simple and efficient workflow on the Opentrons OT-2 robot that combines sample digestion, cleanup, and loading on Evotips in a fully automated manner, allowing the processing of up to 192 samples in 6 h. Analysis of 192 automated HeLa cell sample preparations consistently identified ∼8000 protein groups and ∼130,000 peptide precursors with an 11.5 min active liquid chromatography gradient with the Evosep One and narrow-window data-independent acquisition (nDIA) with the Orbitrap Astral mass spectrometer providing a throughput of 100 samples per day. Our results demonstrate a highly sensitive workflow yielding both reproducibility and stability at low sample inputs. The workflow is optimized for minimal sample starting amount to reduce the costs for reagents needed for sample preparation, which is critical when analyzing large biological cohorts. Building on the digesting workflow, we incorporated an automated phosphopeptide enrichment step using magnetic titanium-immobilized metal ion affinity chromatography beads. This allows for a fully automated proteome and phosphoproteome sample preparation in a single step with high sensitivity. Using the integrated digestion and Evotip loading workflow, we evaluated the effects of cancer immune therapy on the plasma proteome in metastatic melanoma patients.

diaPASEF: parallel accumulation-serial fragmentation combined with data-independent acquisition.

Data-independent acquisition modes isolate and concurrently fragment populations of different precursors by cycling through segments of a predefined precursor m/z range. Although these selection windows collectively cover the entire m/z range, overall, only a few per cent of all incoming ions are isolated for mass analysis. Here, we make use of the correlation of molecular weight and ion mobility in a trapped ion mobility device (timsTOF Pro) to devise a scan mode that samples up to 100% of the peptide precursor ion current in m/z and mobility windows. We extend an established targeted data extraction workflow by inclusion of the ion mobility dimension for both signal extraction and scoring and thereby increase the specificity for precursor identification. Data acquired from whole proteome digests and mixed organism samples demonstrate deep proteome coverage and a high degree of reproducibility as well as quantitative accuracy, even from 10 ng sample amounts.

Evosep One Enables Robust Deep Proteome Coverage Using Tandem Mass Tags while Significantly Reducing Instrument Time.

The balance between comprehensively analyzing the proteome and using valuable mass spectrometry time is a genuine challenge in the field of proteomics. Multidimensional fractionation strategies have significantly increased proteome coverage, but often at the cost of increased mass analysis time, despite advances in mass spectrometer acquisition rates. Recently, the Evosep One liquid chromatography system was shown to analyze peptide samples in a high-throughput manner without sacrificing in-depth proteomics coverage. We demonstrate the incorporation of Evosep One technology into our multiplexing workflow for analysis of tandem mass tag (TMT)-labeled nonsmall cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) patient-derived xenografts (PDXs). By the use of a 30 samples per day Evosep workflow, >12 000 proteins were identified in 48 h of mass spectrometry time, which is comparable to the number of proteins identified by our conventional concatenated EASY-nLC workflow in 60 h. Shorter Evosep gradient lengths reduced the number of protein identifications by 10% while decreasing the mass analysis time by 50%. This Evosep workflow will enable quantitative analysis of multiplexed samples in less time without conceding depth of proteome coverage.

Online Parallel Accumulation-Serial Fragmentation (PASEF) with a Novel Trapped Ion Mobility Mass Spectrometer.

In bottom-up proteomics, peptides are separated by liquid chromatography with elution peak widths in the range of seconds, whereas mass spectra are acquired in about 100 microseconds with time-of-flight (TOF) instruments. This allows adding ion mobility as a third dimension of separation. Among several formats, trapped ion mobility spectrometry (TIMS) is attractive because of its small size, low voltage requirements and high efficiency of ion utilization. We have recently demonstrated a scan mode termed parallel accumulation - serial fragmentation (PASEF), which multiplies the sequencing speed without any loss in sensitivity (Meier et al., PMID: 26538118). Here we introduce the timsTOF Pro instrument, which optimally implements online PASEF. It features an orthogonal ion path into the ion mobility device, limiting the amount of debris entering the instrument and making it very robust in daily operation. We investigate different precursor selection schemes for shotgun proteomics to optimally allocate in excess of 100 fragmentation events per second. More than 600,000 fragmentation spectra in standard 120 min LC runs are achievable, which can be used for near exhaustive precursor selection in complex mixtures or accumulating the signal of weak precursors. In 120 min single runs of HeLa digest, MaxQuant identified more than 6,000 proteins without matching to a library and with high quantitative reproducibility (R > 0.97). Online PASEF achieves a remarkable sensitivity with more than 2,500 proteins identified in 30 min runs of only 10 ng HeLa digest. We also show that highly reproducible collisional cross sections can be acquired on a large scale (R > 0.99). PASEF on the timsTOF Pro is a valuable addition to the technological toolbox in proteomics, with a number of unique operating modes that are only beginning to be explored.

Targeted mass spectrometry analysis of the proteins IGF1, IGF2, IBP2, IBP3 and A2GL by blood protein precipitation.

Biomarker analysis of blood samples by liquid chromatography (LC) mass spectrometry (MS) is extremely challenging due to the high protein concentration range, characterised by abundant proteins that suppress and mask other proteins of lower abundance. This situation is further aggravated when using fast high-throughput methods, which are necessary for analysis of hundreds and thousands of samples in clinical laboratories. The blood proteins IGF1, IGF2, IBP2, IBP3 and A2GL have been proposed as indirect biomarkers for detection of GH administration and as putative biomarkers for breast cancer diagnosis. We describe a sensitive and scalable method to quantify these 5 proteins of medium and low abundance by selected reaction monitoring (SRM) LC-MS/MS analysis in blood samples. Our method requires 7µL of plasma and reaches a throughput of up to ca. 80 analyses per day. It includes an initial protein precipitation protocol optimised for extraction of low mass proteins from blood samples for reduced signal suppression and increased sensitivity in LC-MS/MS. We benchmarked this method for the analysis of 40 individual blood samples including 20 patients diagnosed with breast cancer. BIOLOGICAL SIGNIFICANCE: The interest for MS-based biomarker analysis in body fluids is steadily increasing as proteomics methodology translates into clinical laboratories. We describe a method for detection of 5 distinct proteins of low mass and medium to low abundance, which are of interest in anti-doping and clinical analysis. The analytical setup is simple and robust and is suitable for high-throughput instrument configurations.

Integrated solid-phase extraction-capillary liquid chromatography (speLC) interfaced to ESI-MS/MS for fast characterization and quantification of protein and proteomes.

The high peptide sequencing speed provided by modern hybrid tandem mass spectrometers enables the utilization of fast liquid chromatographic (LC) separation techniques. We present a robust solid-phase extraction/capillary LC system (speLC) for 5-10 min separation of semicomplex peptide mixtures prior to ESI-MS/MS for peptide sequencing. This speLC-MS/MS system eliminates sample-to-sample carry-over by using disposable micropipette solid-phase extraction tips (StageTips) for peptide sample loading, concentration, and desalting. Automated analysis of 192 replicates of E. coli peptide mixtures in 30 h demonstrated the throughput, stability, and reproducibility of the system. The speLC-MS/MS system detected low-femtomole amounts of peptides and allowed sequencing of 1 µg of HeLa cells protein extracts at a rate of ∼ 90 peptides/min, identifying more than 1500 peptides (>500 proteins) in a 10 min speLC-MS/MS experiment. Analysis by selected reaction monitoring by speLC-SRM-MS/MS of distinct peptides derived from the blood proteins IGF1, IGF2, IBP2, and IBP3 demonstrated protein quantification with CV values below 10% across 96 replicates. The speLC-MS/MS system is ideally suited for fast screening and characterization of large numbers of peptide-containing samples in biological, biomedical, and clinical laboratories.

Biomarker candidate discovery in Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) continuously exposed to North Sea produced water from egg to fry.

In this study Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) were exposed to different levels of North Sea produced water (PW) and 17beta-oestradiol (E(2)), a natural oestrogen, from egg to fry stage (90 days). By comparing changes in protein expression following E(2) exposure to changes induced by PW treatment, we were able to compare the induced changes by PW to the mode of action of oestrogens. Changes in the proteome in response to exposure in whole cod fry (approximately 80 days post-hatching, dph) were detected by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and image analysis and identified by MALDI-ToF-ToF mass spectrometry, using a newly developed cod EST database and the NCBI database. Many of the protein changes occurred at low levels (0.01% and 0.1% PW) of exposure, indicating putative biological responses at lower levels than previously detected. Using discriminant analysis, we identified a set of protein changes that may be useful as biomarker candidates of produced water (PW) and oestradiol exposure in Atlantic cod fry. The biomarker candidates discovered in this study may, following validation, prove effective as diagnostic tools in monitoring exposure and effects of discharges from the petroleum industry offshore, aiding future environmental risk analysis and risk management.

Hydrogen atom scrambling in selectively labeled anionic peptides upon collisional activation by MALDI tandem time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

We have previously shown that peptide amide hydrogens undergo extensive intramolecular migration (i.e., complete hydrogen scrambling) upon collisional activation of protonated peptides (Jørgensen et al. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2005, 127, 2785-2793). The occurrence of hydrogen scrambling enforces severe limitations on the application of gas-phase fragmentation as a convenient method to obtain information about the site-specific deuterium uptake for proteins and peptides in solution. To investigate whether deprotonated peptides exhibit a lower level of scrambling relative to their protonated counterparts, we have now measured the level of hydrogen scrambling in a deprotonated, selectively labeled peptide using MALDI tandem time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Our results conclusively show that hydrogen scrambling is prevalent in the deprotonated peptide upon collisional activation. The amide hydrogens ((1)H/(2)H) have migrated extensively in the anionic peptide, thereby erasing the original regioselective deuteration pattern obtained in solution.

Gas-phase fragmentation of peptides by MALDI in-source decay with limited amide hydrogen (1H/2H) scrambling.

To achieve a fundamental understanding of the function of proteins and protein complexes at the molecular level, it is crucial to obtain a detailed knowledge about their dynamic and structural properties. The kinetics of backbone amide hydrogen exchange is intimately linked to the structural dynamics of the protein, and in recent years, the monitoring of the isotopic exchange of these hydrogens by mass spectrometry has become a recognized method. At present, the resolution of this method is, however, limited and single-residue resolution is typically only obtained for a few residues in a protein. It would therefore be desirable if gas-phase fragmentation could be used to localize incorporated deuterons as this would ultimately lead to single-residue resolution. A central obstacle for this approach is, however, the occurrence of intramolecular migration of amide hydrogens upon activation of the gaseous protein (i.e., hydrogen scrambling). Here we investigate the occurrence of scrambling in selectively labeled peptides upon fragmentation by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization in-source decay (MALDI ISD). We have utilized peptides with a unique regioselective deuterium incorporation that allows us to accurately determine the extent of scrambling upon fragmentation. Our results show that the level of scrambling upon MALDI ISD is so low that the solution deuteration pattern is readily apparent in the gas-phase fragment ions. These results suggest that MALDI ISD may prove useful for hydrogen exchange studies of purified peptides and small proteins.

The in vivo phosphorylation sites of rat brain dynamin I.

Dynamin I (dynI) is phosphorylated in synaptosomes at Ser(774) and Ser(778) by cyclin-dependent kinase 5 to regulate recruitment of syndapin I for synaptic vesicle endocytosis, and in PC12 cells on Ser(857). Hierarchical phosphorylation of Ser(774) precedes phosphorylation of Ser(778). In contrast, Thr(780) phosphorylation by cdk5 has been reported as the sole site (Tomizawa, K., Sunada, S., Lu, Y. F., Oda, Y., Kinuta, M., Ohshima, T., Saito, T., Wei, F. Y., Matsushita, M., Li, S. T., Tsutsui, K., Hisanaga, S. I., Mikoshiba, K., Takei, K., and Matsui, H. (2003) J. Cell Biol. 163, 813-824). To resolve the discrepancy and to better understand the biological roles of dynI phosphorylation, we undertook a systematic identification of all phosphorylation sites in rat brain nerve terminal dynI. Using phosphoamino acid analysis, exclusively phospho-serine residues were found. Thr(780) phosphorylation was not detectable. Mutation of Ser(774), Ser(778), and Thr(780) confirmed that Thr(780) phosphorylation is restricted to in vitro conditions. Mass spectrometry of (32)P-labeled phosphopeptides separated by two-dimensional mapping revealed seven in vivo phosphorylation sites: Ser(774), Ser(778), Ser(822), Ser(851), Ser(857), Ser(512), and Ser(347). Quantification of (32)P radiation in each phosphopeptide showed that Ser(774) and Ser(778) were the major sites (up to 69% of the total), followed by Ser(851) and Ser(857) (12%), and Ser(853) (2%). Phosphorylation of Ser(851) and Ser(857) was restricted to the long tail splice variant dynIxa and was not hierarchical. Co-purified, (32)P-labeled dynIII was phosphorylated at Ser(759), Ser(763), and Ser(853). Ser(853) is homologous to Ser(851) in dynIxa. The results identify all major and several minor phosphorylation sites in dynI and provide the first measure of their relative abundance and relative responses to depolarization. The multiple phospho-sites suggest subtle regulation of synaptic vesicle endocytosis by new protein kinases and new protein-protein interactions. The homologous dynI and dynIII phosphorylation indicates a high mechanistic similarity. The results suggest a unique role for the long splice variants of dynI and dynIII in nerve terminals.

Protein composition of catalytically active human telomerase from immortal cells.

Telomerase is a ribonucleoprotein enzyme complex that adds 5'-TTAGGG-3' repeats onto the ends of human chromosomes, providing a telomere maintenance mechanism for approximately 90% of human cancers. We have purified human telomerase approximately 10(8)-fold, with the final elution dependent on the enzyme's ability to catalyze nucleotide addition onto a DNA oligonucleotide of telomeric sequence, thereby providing specificity for catalytically active telomerase. Mass spectrometric sequencing of the protein components and molecular size determination indicated an enzyme composition of two molecules each of telomerase reverse transcriptase, telomerase RNA, and dyskerin.