Compound Identification Using Liquid Chromatography and High-Resolution Noncontact Fraction Collection with a Solenoid Valve.

We describe the development of a high-resolution, noncontact fraction collector for liquid chromatography (LC) separations, allowing high-resolution fractionation in high-density well plates. The device is based on a low-dead-volume solenoid valve operated at 1-30 Hz for accurate collection of fractions of equal volume. The solenoid valve was implemented in a modified autosampler resulting in the so-called FractioMate fractionator. The influence of the solenoid supply voltage on solvent release was determined and the effect of the frequency, flow rate, and mobile phase composition was studied. For this purpose, droplet release was visually assessed for a wide range of frequencies and flow rates, followed by quantitative evaluation of a selection of promising settings for highly accurate, repeatable, and stable fraction collection. The potential of the new fraction collector for LC-based bioactivity screening was demonstrated by fractionating the LC eluent of a mixture of estrogenic and androgenic compounds, and a surface water sample (blank and spiked with bioactives) combining mass spectrometric detection and two reporter gene assays for bioactivity detection of the fractions. Additionally, a mixture of two compounds was repeatedly LC separated and fractionated to assess the feasibility of the system for analyte isolation followed by nuclear magnetic resonance analysis.

An integrated high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry system for the activity-dependent analysis of matrix metalloproteases.

Matrix metalloproteases (MMPs) comprise a family of enzymes that play important roles in mediating angiogenesis, the remodelling of tissues and in cancer metastasis. Consequently, they are attractive targets for therapeutic intervention in chronic inflammation, cancer and neurological disorders. In order to study MMPs in body fluids in an activity-dependent manner, we have developed an automated, integrated system comprising an immobilized inhibitor cartridge for activity-dependent enrichment, an immobilized trypsin reactor for rapid on-line proteolysis and a capillary or nanoLC-MS system for separation and identification of the obtained peptide fragments. This targeted proteomics system was optimized with respect to recovery and evaluated through the analysis of urine samples that were spiked with recombinant MMP-12. MMP-12 specific peptide fragments were easily detected in a nanoLC-MS analysis of 500 microL crude urine spiked at a level of 8 nM. These results show the feasibility of selective, activity-dependent enrichment of MMPs from a non-treated biofluid at low nM concentrations.

Generic solid phase extraction-liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method for fast determination of drugs in biological fluids.

A generic method was developed for the fast determination of a wide range of drugs in serum or plasma. The methodology comprises generic solid-phase extraction, on-line coupled to gradient HPLC with tandem mass spectrometric detection (SPE-LC-MS/MS). The individual components of the SPE-LC-MS/MS system were optimized in an integrated approach to maximize the application range and minimize the method development time. The optimized generic SPE-LC-MS/MS protocol was evaluated for 11 drugs with different physicochemical properties. Good quantification for 10 out of 11 of the pharmaceuticals in serum or plasma could be readily achieved. The quantitative assays gave recoveries better than 95%, lower quantification limits of 0.2-2.0 ng/ml, acceptable precision and accuracy and good linearity over 2-4 orders of magnitude. Carry-over was determined to be in the range of 0.02-0.10%, without optimization.

The pathologist's mean grade is constant and individualizes the prognostic value of bladder cancer grading.

BACKGROUND: A new grading system for bladder cancer (BCa) was adopted in 2004 to reduce observer variability and provide better prognostic information. OBJECTIVE: We compared the World Health Organization (WHO) 1973 and 2004 systems for observer variability and prognosis. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Slides of 173 primary non-muscle-invasive BCa were reviewed two times by four pathologists. MEASUREMENTS: Intra- and interobserver variability were assessed using κ statistics. We determined the mean grade (eg, G1/low malignant potential is 1 grade point, G2/low grade is 2 grade points) of the pathologists per grading cycle. Kaplan-Meier analyses were applied for prediction of recurrence and progression. RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS: For WHO 2004 and 1973 grading, the agreement between the pathologists was 39-74% (κ: 0.14-0.58) and 39-64% (κ: 0.15-0.41), respectively. The intraobserver agreement varied from 71% to 88% (κ: 0.55-0.81). The mean grade of a pathologist was constant (difference below 0.1 grade point) irrespective of the grading system. Conversely, mean-grade differences among the pathologists were high, up to 0.7 grade point. The mean grades for the WHO 2004 system were 0.3-0.5 grade point higher than those of WHO 1973. Mean grade distinguished low and high graders among the pathologists and was strongly linked with risk of progression in each grade category. CONCLUSIONS: The variation in mean grade among individual pathologists exceeded the grade shift caused by WHO 2004 grading. Knowledge of the pathologist's mean grade allows a better assessment of the prognostic value of grading. Mean grade has the potential to become a tool for quality assurance in pathology.

Molecular grade (FGFR3/MIB-1) and EORTC risk scores are predictive in primary non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer.

BACKGROUND: The European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) risk scores are not validated in an independent patient population. Molecular grade (mG) based on fibroblast growth factor receptor 3 (FGFR3) gene mutation status and MIB-1 expression was proposed as an alternative to pathologic grade in bladder cancer (BCa) [1]. OBJECTIVE: To validate the EORTC risk score and to determine its relation to mG in a series with long-term follow-up as well as to determine reproducibility of pathologic grade and mG. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: In this multicenter study, we included 230 patients with primary non-muscle-invasive BCa (NMIBC). MEASUREMENTS: Four uropathologists reviewed the slides. FGFR3 mutation status was examined by two assays. MIB-1 was assessed by immunohistochemistry. The EORTC risk scores for recurrence and progression were determined. Multivariable analyses were used to find prognostic factors. RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS: Median follow-up was 8.62 yr (interquartile range: 6.6-11.8). FGFR3 mutations were significantly related to favorable disease parameters, whereas altered MIB-1 was frequently seen with pT1, high grade, and high EORTC risk scores. EORTC risk scores were significant in multivariable analyses for recurrence and progression. In multivariable analyses for progression and disease-specific survival, the mG had independent significance. The addition of mG to the multivariable model for progression increased the predictive accuracy from 74.9% to 81.7% (p<0.001; Mantel-Haenszel test). The mG (89%) was more reproducible than the pathologic grade (41-74%). CONCLUSIONS: We validated the EORTC risk scores for primary NMIBC in a clinical and biomarker setting. Next to EORTC risk score, mG proved highly reproducible and predictive. Our long-term results justify an independent prospective analysis of mG and EORTC risk scores.

Direct injection of whole blood for liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry analysis to support single-rodent pharmacokinetic studies.

Mass spectrometric developments in the last decade enable (sub)nanomolar detection of drug compounds in biological matrices in a few microliters of blood. However, the sampling and especially the handling of these small blood volumes is not straightforward. We studied the feasibility of a recently developed 'sorbent sampling technique' to handle these small blood volumes and the application to support pharmacokinetic (PK) screening programs. This technique applies 5-10 microL of blood on a fibrous material packed into a cartridge. Blood samples absorbed on these cartridges are eluted directly, on-line onto a solid-phase extraction liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (SPE-LC/MS/MS) system. It is shown that the sorbent sampling technique can be applied for a range of drug compounds. In spite of issues with recovery and sample clean-up that need further improvement, the sorbent sampling technique provided similar data as compared to conventional analytics. The technique was successfully applied to derive kinetic data from individual mice, thereby decreasing the number of required mice for a PK study from 21 to 3.

Selective isolation at the femtomole level of phosphopeptides from proteolytic digests using 2D-NanoLC-ESI-MS/MS and titanium oxide precolumns.

Selective detection of phosphopeptides from proteolytic digests is a challenging and highly relevant task in many proteomics applications. Often phosphopeptides are present in small amounts and need selective isolation or enrichment before identification. Here we report a novel automated method for the enrichment of phosphopeptides from complex mixtures. The method employs a two-dimensional column setup, with titanium oxide-based solid-phase material (Titansphere) as the first dimension and reversed-phase material as the second dimension. Phosphopeptides are separated from nonphosphorylated peptides by trapping them under acidic conditions on a TiO(2) precolumn. Nonphosphorylated peptides break through and are trapped on a reversed-phase precolumn after which they are analyzed by nanoflow LC-ESI-MS/MS. Subsequently, phosphopeptides are desorbed from the TiO(2) column under alkaline conditions, reconcentrated onto the reversed-phase precolumn, and analyzed by nanoflow LC-ESI-MS/MS. The selectivity and practicality of using TiO(2) precolumns for trapping phosphopeptides are demonstrated via the analysis of a model peptide RKISASEF, in a 1:1 mixture of a non- and a monophosphorylated form. A sample of 125 fmol of the phosphorylated peptide could easily be isolated from the nonphosphorylated peptide with a recovery above 90%. In addition, proteolytic digests of three different autophosphorylation forms of the 153-kDa homodimeric cGMP-dependent protein kinase are analyzed. From proteolytic digests of the fully autophosphorylated protein at least eight phosphorylation sites are identified, including two previously uncharacterized sites, namely, Ser-26 and Ser-44. Ser-26 is characterized as a minor phosphorylation site in purified PKG samples, while Ser-44 is identified as a novel in vitro autophosphorylation target. These results clearly show that TiO(2) has strong affinity for phosphorylated peptides, and thus, we conclude that this material has a high potential in the field of phosphoproteomics.