A method using angiotensin converting enzyme immobilized on magnetic beads for inhibitor screening.

Angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE), fusing with FLAG tag, was overexpressed in human embryonic kidney 293T cells. This recombinant FLAG-tagged ACE was immobilized on anti-FLAG antibody coated magnetic beads by affinity method in crude cell lysate for the first time. The enzyme-immobilized magnetic beads (ACE-MB), without further cleavage procedure, were used directly to establish a cost-effective and reliable method for screening ACE inhibitors by coupling with fluorescence detection. The enzymatic activity of the ACE-MB was validated based on its Michaelian kinetic behavior towards hippuryl-histidyl-leucine by UHPLC-MS/MS method firstly. Then, several conditions were optimized including amount of magnetic beads, incubation temperature and time in the procedure of ACE immobilization and amount of ACE-MB in the microplate operation. Moreover, this screening assay was validated with Z' factors between 0.71 and 0.81 using four known ACE inhibitors (captopril, lisinopril, fosinopril and fosinoprilat). The developed method was applied for the screening of ACE inhibitors from a small compound library of 45 natural products. As a result, epiberberine and fangchinoline with certain ACE inhibitory activities were screened out in the assay and validated. The results demonstrate the usefulness of this screening method using ACE immobilized on magnetic beads and the advantage of great efficiency with respect to both time and reagents for screening ACE inhibitors.

Assessment and Impacts of Phosphorylation on Protein Flexibility of the α-d-Phosphohexomutases.

Enzymes in the α-d-phosphohexomutase (PHM) superfamily catalyze a multistep reaction, entailing two successive phosphoryl transfers. Key to this reaction is a conserved phosphoserine in the active site, which serves alternately as a phosphoryl donor and acceptor during the catalytic cycle. In addition to its role in the enzyme mechanism, the phosphorylation state of the catalytic phosphoserine has recently been found to have widespread effects on the structural flexibility of enzymes in this superfamily. These effects must be carefully accounted for when assessing other perturbations to these enzymes, such as mutations or ligand binding. In this chapter, we focus on methods for assessing and modulating the phosphorylation state of the catalytic serine, as well as straightforward ways to probe the impacts of this modification on protein structure/flexibility. This knowledge is essential for producing homogeneous and stable samples of these proteins for biophysical studies. The methods described herein should be widely applicable to enzymes across the PHM superfamily and may also be useful in characterizing the effects of posttranslational modifications on other proteins.

High throughput detection of deamidation using S-(5'-adenosyl)-l-homocysteine hydrolase and a fluorogenic reagent.

Deamidation of asparagine (Asn) residues is one of the most common chemical degradation pathways observed in proteins. This reaction must be understood and controlled in therapeutic drug candidates, as chemical changes can affect their efficacy and safety. The analytical tools available for detection of deamidation reaction products, such as isoaspartic acid residues, are either chromatographic or electrophoretic, and require MS detection for absolute identification of peaks. High-throughput measurement of protein degradation has typically been limited to probing the target's physical state using spectroscopic techniques. Here, we describe a high throughput assay for isoaspartate residues using fluorescent detection in a microtiter plate format. The method allows for fast detection of protein deamidation in a cost-efficient manner. The method can be employed even if the target peptide or protein contains free Cys residues. The technique appears to be selective, linear, and accurate.

Assessment of AMPK-Stimulated Cellular Long-Chain Fatty Acid and Glucose Uptake.

Here we describe an assay for simultaneous measurement of cellular uptake rates of long-chain fatty acids (LCFA) and glucose that can be applied to cells in suspension. The uptake assay includes the use of radiolabeled substrates at such concentrations and incubation periods that exact information is provided about unidirectional uptakes rates. Cellular uptake of both substrates is under regulation of AMPK. The underlying mechanism includes the translocation of LCFA and glucose transporters from intracellular membrane compartments to the cell surface, leading to an increase in substrate uptake. In this chapter, we explain the principles of the uptake assay before detailing the exact procedure. We also provide information of the specific LCFA and glucose transporters subject to AMPK-mediated subcellular translocation. Finally, we discuss the application of AMPK inhibitors and activators in combination with cellular substrate uptake assays.

Label free screening of enzyme inhibitors at femtomole scale using segmented flow electrospray ionization mass spectrometry.

Droplet-based microfluidics is an attractive platform for screening and optimizing chemical reactions. Using this approach, it is possible to reliably manipulate nanoliter volume samples and perform operations such as reagent addition with high precision, automation, and throughput. Most studies using droplet microfluidics have relied on optical techniques to detect the reaction; however, this requires engineering color or fluorescence change into the reaction being studied. In this work, we couple electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) to nanoliter scale segmented flow reactions to enable direct (label-free) analysis of reaction products. The system is applied to a screen of inhibitors for cathepsin B. In this approach, solutions of test compounds (including three known inhibitors) are arranged as an array of nanoliter droplets in a tube segmented by perfluorodecalin. The samples are pumped through a series of tees to add enzyme, substrate (peptides), and quenchant. The resulting reaction mixtures are then infused into a metal-coated, fused silica ESI emitter for MS analysis. The system has potential for high-throughput as reagent addition steps are performed at 0.7 s per sample and ESI-MS at up to 1.2 s per sample. Carryover is inconsequential in the ESI emitter and between 2 and 9% per reagent addition depending on the tee utilized. The assay was reliable with a Z-factor of ~0.8. The method required 0.8 pmol of test compound, 1.6 pmol of substrate, and 5 fmol of enzyme per reaction. Segmented flow ESI-MS allows direct, label free screening of reactions at good throughput and ultralow sample consumption.

Acoustic deposition with NIMS as a high-throughput enzyme activity assay.

Mass spectrometry (MS)-based enzyme assay has been shown to be a useful tool for screening enzymatic activities from environmental samples. Recently, reported approaches for high-specificity multiplexed characterization of enzymatic activities allow for providing detailed information on the range of enzymatic products and monitoring multiple enzymatic reactions. However, the throughput has been limited by the slow liquid-liquid handling and manual analysis. This rapid communication demonstrates the integration of acoustic sample deposition with nanostructure initiator mass spectrometry (NIMS) imaging to provide reproducible measurements of multiple enzymatic reactions at a throughput that is tenfold to 100-fold faster than conventional MS-based enzyme assay. It also provides a simple means for the visualization of multiple reactions and reaction pathways.