C alpha-C backbone fragmentation dominates in electron detachment dissociation of gas-phase polypeptide polyanions

Salt-Bridged Peptide Anion Gaseous Structures Enable Efficient Negative Ion Electron Capture Dissociation

We previously discovered that electron attachment to gaseous peptide anions can occur within a relatively narrow electron energy range. The resulting charge-increased radical ions undergo dissociation analogous to conventional cation electron capture/transfer dissociation (ECD/ETD), thus enabling a novel tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) technique that we termed negative ion electron capture dissociation (niECD). We proposed that gaseous zwitterionic structures are required for niECD with electron capture either occurring at or being directed by a positively charged site. Here, we further evaluate this zwitterion mechanism by performing niECD of peptides derivatized to alter their ability to form zwitterionic gaseous structures. Introduction of a fixed positive charge tag, a highly basic guanidino group, or a highly acidic sulfonate group to promote zwitterionic structures in singly charged anions, rescued the niECD ability of a peptide refractory to niECD in its unmodified form. We also performed a systematic study of five sets of synthetic peptides with decreasing zwitterion propensity and found that niECD efficiency decreased accordingly, further supporting the zwitterion mechanism. However, traveling-wave ion mobility-mass spectrometry experiments, performed to gain further insight into the gas-phase structures of peptides showing high niECD efficiency, exhibited an inverse correlation between the orientationally averaged collision cross sections and niECD efficiency. These results indicate that compact salt-bridged structures are also a requirement for effective niECD.

Collagen breaks at weak sacrificial bonds taming its mechanoradicals

Collagen is a force-bearing, hierarchical structural protein important to all connective tissue. In tendon collagen, high load even below macroscopic failure level creates mechanoradicals by homolytic bond scission, similar to polymers. The location and type of initial rupture sites critically decide on both the mechanical and chemical impact of these micro-ruptures on the tissue, but are yet to be explored. We here use scale-bridging simulations supported by gel electrophoresis and mass spectrometry to determine breakage points in collagen. We find collagen crosslinks, as opposed to the backbone, to harbor the weakest bonds, with one particular bond in trivalent crosslinks as the most dominant rupture site. We identify this bond as sacrificial, rupturing prior to other bonds while maintaining the material's integrity. Also, collagen's weak bonds funnel ruptures such that the potentially harmful mechanoradicals are readily stabilized. Our results suggest this unique failure mode of collagen to be tailored towards combatting an early onset of macroscopic failure and material ageing.

The Omnitrap Platform: A Versatile Segmented Linear Ion Trap for Multidimensional Multiple-Stage Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Multidimensional multiple-stage tandem processing of ions is demonstrated successfully in a novel segmented linear ion trap. The enhanced performance is enabled by incorporating the entire range of ion activation methods into a single platform in a highly dynamic fashion. The ion activation network comprises external injection of reagent ions, radical neutral species, photons, electrons, and collisions with neutrals. Axial segmentation of the two-dimensional trapping field provides access to a unique functionality landscape through a system of purpose-designed regions for processing ions with maximum flexibility. Design aspects of the segmented linear ion trap, termed the Omnitrap platform, are highlighted, and motion of ions trapped by rectangular waveforms is investigated experimentally by mapping the stability diagram, tracing secular frequencies, and exploring different isolation techniques. All fragmentation methods incorporated in the Omnitrap platform involving radical chemistry are shown to provide complete sequence coverage for partially unfolded ubiquitin. Three-stage (MS3) tandem mass spectrometry experiments combining collision-induced dissociation of radical ions produced by electron meta-ionization and further involving two intermediate steps of ion isolation and accumulation are performed with high efficiency, producing information rich spectra with signal-to-noise levels comparable to those obtained in a two-stage (MS2) experiment. The advanced capabilities of the Omnitrap platform to provide in-depth top-down MSn characterization of proteins are portrayed. Performance is further enhanced by connecting the Omnitrap platform to an Orbitrap mass analyzer, while successful integration with time-of-flight analyzers has already been demonstrated.

Multimodal Tandem Mass Spectrometry Techniques for the Analysis of Phosphopeptides

Collisionally activated dissociation (CAD), infrared multiphoton dissociation (IRMPD), ultraviolet photodissociation (UVPD), electron capture dissociation and electron detachment dissociation (EDD) experiments were conducted on a set of phosphopeptides, in a Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometer. The fragmentation patterns were compared and varied according to the fragmentation mechanisms and the composition of the peptides. CAD and IRMPD produced similar fragmentation profiles of the phosphopeptides, while UVPD produced a large number of complementary fragments. Electron-based dissociation techniques displayed lower fragmentation efficiencies, despite retaining the labile phosphate group, and drastically different fragmentation profiles. EDD produced complex spectra whose interpretation proved challenging.

Mass Spectrometry-Based Techniques to Elucidate the Sugar Code

Cells encode information in the sequence of biopolymers, such as nucleic acids, proteins, and glycans. Although glycans are essential to all living organisms, surprisingly little is known about the "sugar code" and the biological roles of these molecules. The reason glycobiology lags behind its counterparts dealing with nucleic acids and proteins lies in the complexity of carbohydrate structures, which renders their analysis extremely challenging. Building blocks that may differ only in the configuration of a single stereocenter, combined with the vast possibilities to connect monosaccharide units, lead to an immense variety of isomers, which poses a formidable challenge to conventional mass spectrometry. In recent years, however, a combination of innovative ion activation methods, commercialization of ion mobility-mass spectrometry, progress in gas-phase ion spectroscopy, and advances in computational chemistry have led to a revolution in mass spectrometry-based glycan analysis. The present review focuses on the above techniques that expanded the traditional glycomics toolkit and provided spectacular insight into the structure of these fascinating biomolecules. To emphasize the specific challenges associated with them, major classes of mammalian glycans are discussed in separate sections. By doing so, we aim to put the spotlight on the most important element of glycobiology: the glycans themselves.

Differentiating aspartic acid isomers and epimers with charge transfer dissociation mass spectrometry (CTD-MS)

The ability to understand the function of a protein often relies on knowledge about its detailed structure. Sometimes, seemingly insignificant changes in the primary structure of a protein, like an amino acid substitution, can completely disrupt a protein's function. Long-lived proteins (LLPs), which can be found in critical areas of the human body, like the brain and eye, are especially susceptible to primary sequence alterations in the form of isomerization and epimerization. Because long-lived proteins do not have the corrective regeneration capabilities of most other proteins, points of isomerism and epimerization that accumulate within the proteins can severely hamper their functions and can lead to serious diseases like Alzheimer's disease, cancer and cataracts. Whereas tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) in the form of collision-induced dissociation (CID) generally excels at peptide characterization, MS/MS often struggles to pinpoint modifications within LLPs, especially when the differences are only isomeric or epimeric in nature. One of the most prevalent and difficult-to-identify modifications is that of aspartic acid between its four isomeric forms: L-Asp, L-isoAsp, D-Asp, and D-isoAsp. In this study, peptides containing isomers of Asp were analyzed by charge transfer dissociation (CTD) mass spectrometry to identify spectral features that could discriminate between the different isomers. For the four isomers of Asp in three model peptides, CTD produced diagnostic ions of the form c_n+57 on the N-terminal side of iso-Asp residues, but not on the N-terminal side of Asp residues. Using CTD, the L- and D forms of Asp and isoAsp could also be differentiated based on the relative abundance of y- and z ions on the C-terminal side of Asp residues. Differentiation was accomplished through a chiral discrimination factor, R, which compares an ion ratio in a spectrum of one epimer or isomer to the same ion ratio in the spectrum of a different epimer or isomer. The R values obtained using CTD are as robust and statistically significant as other fragmentation techniques, like radical directed dissociation (RDD). In summary, the extent of backbone and side-chain fragments produced by CTD enabled the differentiation of isomers and epimers of Asp in a variety of peptides.

Gas-Phase Peptide Fragmentation Induced by Hydrogen Attachment, from Principle to Sequencing of Amide Nitrogen-Methylated Peptides

Tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) with radical-based fragmentation was developed recently, which involves the reaction of hydrogen atoms and peptides in a process called hydrogen attachment/abstraction dissociation (HAD). HAD mainly produces [c_n + 2H]⁺ and [z_m + 2H]⁺ via hydrogen attachment to the carbonyl oxygen on the peptide backbone. In addition, HAD often generates [a_n + 2H]⁺ and [x_m + 2H]⁺. To explain the formation of [a_n + 2H]⁺ and [x_m + 2H]⁺, hydrogen attachment to the carbonyl carbon atom on the peptide backbone is proposed to initiate C_α-C bond cleavage. The resultant hydrogen-abundant oxygen-centered radical intermediate undergoes radical-induced dissociation to give [a_n + H]^+• and [x_m + 2H]⁺. Subsequently, [a_n + 2H]⁺ was produced by the reaction of [a_n + H]^+• and a hydrogen atom. The fragment ions formed by the cleavage of N-C_α and C_α-C bonds are observed in the HAD-MS/MS spectra, and the mass differences of these fragment ions correspond to the mass of peptide bonds. Consequently, HAD-MS/MS allows the identification of post-translational modifications on the peptide backbone. In addition, HAD-MS/MS provides a consecutive series of [c_n + 2H]⁺ and [a_n + 2H]⁺ as the N-terminal fragments, as well as [z_m + 2H]⁺ and [x_m + 2H]⁺, which enables the sequencing of peptides with post-translational modification, including the discrimination of modifications on the side chain and backbone.

TUTORIAL: ION ACTIVATION IN TANDEM MASS SPECTROMETRY USING ULTRA-HIGH RESOLUTION INSTRUMENTATION

Tandem mass spectrometry involves isolation of specific precursor ions and their subsequent excitation through collision-, photon-, or electron-mediated activation techniques in order to induce unimolecular dissociation leading to formation of fragment ions. These powerful ion activation techniques, typically used in between mass selection and mass analysis steps for structural elucidation, have not only found a wide variety of analytical applications in chemistry and biology, but they have also been used to study the fundamental properties of ions in the gas phase. In this tutorial paper, a brief overview is presented of the theories that have been used to describe the activation of ions and their subsequent unimolecular dissociation. Acronyms of the presented techniques include CID, PQD, HCD, SORI, SID, BIRD, IRMPD, UVPD, EPD, ECD, EDD, ETD, and EID. The fundamental principles of these techniques are discussed in the context of their implementation on ultra-high resolution tandem mass spectrometers. © 2020 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. Mass Spec Rev.

Mechanistic examination of Cα -Cβ tyrosyl bond cleavage: Spectroscopic investigation of the generation of α-glycyl radical cations from tyrosyl (glycyl/alanyl)tryptophan

In this study, dissociative one-electron transfer dissociation of [CuII (dien)Y(G/A)W]•2+ [dien = diethylenetriamine; Y(G/A)W = tyrosyl (glycyl/alanyl)tryptophan] was used to generate the tripeptide radical cations [Y(G/A)W]•+ ; subsequent loss of the Tyr side chain formed [Gα • (G/A)W]+ . The π-centered species [YGWπ • ]+ generated the α-centered species [Gα • GW]+ through Cα -Cβ bond cleavage, as revealed using infrared multiple photon dissociation (IRMPD) measurements and density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Comparisons of experimental and theoretical IR spectra confirmed that both the charge and spin densities of [Y(G/A)Wπ • ]+ were delocalized initially at the tryptophan indolyl ring; subsequent formation of the final [Gα • (G/A)W]+ structure gave the highest spin density at the α-carbon atom of the N-terminal glycine residue, with a proton solvated by the first amide oxygen atom. The IRMPD mass spectra and action spectra of the [Gα • (G/A)W]+ species were all distinctly different from those of their isomeric [G(G/A)Wπ • ]+ species. The mechanism of formation of the captodative [Gα • (G/A)W]+ species-with the charge site separated from the radical site-from [Y(G/A)Wπ • ]+ has been elucidated. DFT calculations suggested that the Cα -Cβ bond cleavage of the tyrosine residue in the radical cationic [Y(G/A)Wπ • ]+ precursor involves (a) through-space electron transfer between the indolyl and phenolic groups; (b) formation of proton-bound dimers through Cα -Cβ cleavage of the tyrosine residue; and (c) a concerted proton rearrangement from the phenolic OH group to the carboxyl group and formation of the α-carbon-centered product [Gα • (G/A)W]+ through hydrogen bond cleavage. The barriers for the electron transfer (a), the Cα -Cβ cleavage (b), and the protonation rearrangement (c) were 12.8, 26.5, and 10.3 kcal mol-1 , respectively.

General Mechanism of Cα-C Peptide Backbone Bond Cleavage in Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization In-Source Decay Mediated by Hydrogen Abstraction

Nitrogen-centered and β-carbon-centered hydrogen-deficient peptide radicals are considered to be intermediates in the matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization in-source decay (MALDI-ISD)-induced C_α-C bond cleavage of peptide backbones when using an oxidizing matrix. To understand the general mechanism of C_α-C bond cleavage by MALDI-ISD, I study the fragmentation of model peptides and investigate the fragment formation pathways using calculations with density functional theory and transition state theory. The calculations indicate that the nitrogen-centered radical immediately undergoes C_α-C bond cleavage, leading to the formation of an a•/x fragment pair. In contrast, the dissociation of the β-carbon-centered radical is kinetically feasible under MALDI-ISD conditions, leading to the formation of an a/x• fragment pair. To discriminate these processes, I focus on the yield of d fragments, which originate from a• radicals through radical-induced side-chain loss, not from a fragments. The C_α-C bond cleavage on the C-terminal side of the carbamidomethylated cysteine residue is found to produce d fragments instead of a fragments. According to the calculation of the rate constant, the corresponding fragmentation occurs within 1 ns. The intense signal arising from d fragments and the lack of or weak signal from a fragments strongly suggest that the C_α-C bond cleavage occurs through a nitrogen-centered radical intermediate. In addition to the side-chain loss, the resulting a• radical undergoes hydrogen atom abstraction by the matrix. The results for a deuterium-labeled peptide indicate that the matrix abstracts a hydrogen atom from either the amide nitrogen or the β-carbon.

Gas-Phase Hydrogen/Deuterium Scrambling in Negative-Ion Mode Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Hydrogen/deuterium exchange coupled with mass spectrometry (HDX MS) has become a powerful method to characterize protein conformational dynamics. Workflows typically utilize pepsin digestion prior to MS analysis to yield peptide level structural resolution. Tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) can potentially facilitate determination of site-specific deuteration to single-residue resolution. However, to be effective, MS/MS activation must minimize the occurrence of gas-phase intramolecular randomization of solution-generated deuterium labels. While significant work has focused on understanding this process in positive-ion mode, little is known about hydrogen/deuterium (H/D) scrambling processes in negative-ion mode. Here, we utilize selectively deuterated model peptides to investigate the extent of intramolecular H/D scrambling upon several negative-ion mode MS/MS techniques, including negative-ion collision-induced dissociation (nCID), electron detachment dissociation (EDD), negative-ion free radical-initiated peptide sequencing (nFRIPS), and negative-ion electron capture dissociation (niECD). H/D scrambling was extensive in deprotonated peptides upon nCID and nFRIPS. In fact, the energetics required to induce dissociation in nCID are sufficient to allow histidine C-2 and C_β hydrogen atoms to participate in the scrambling process. EDD and niECD demonstrated moderate H/D scrambling with niECD being superior in terms of minimizing hydrogen migration, achieving ~ 30% scrambling levels for small c-type fragment ions. We believe the observed scrambling is likely due to activation during ionization and ion transport rather than during the niECD event itself.

Radical solutions: Principles and application of electron-based dissociation in mass spectrometry-based analysis of protein structure

In recent years, electron capture (ECD) and electron transfer dissociation (ETD) have emerged as two of the most useful methods in mass spectrometry-based protein analysis, evidenced by a considerable and growing body of literature. In large part, the interest in these methods is due to their ability to induce backbone fragmentation with very little disruption of noncovalent interactions which allows inference of information regarding higher order structure from the observed fragmentation behavior. Here, we review the evolution of electron-based dissociation methods, and pay particular attention to their application in "native" mass spectrometry, their mechanism, determinants of fragmentation behavior, and recent developments in available instrumentation. Although we focus on the two most widely used methods-ECD and ETD-we also discuss the use of other ion/electron, ion/ion, and ion/neutral fragmentation methods, useful for interrogation of a range of classes of biomolecules in positive- and negative-ion mode, and speculate about how this exciting field might evolve in the coming years.

Electron-ion reaction-based dissociation: A powerful ion activation method for the elucidation of natural product structures

The structural elucidation of natural products (NPs) remains a challenge due to their structurally diversities and unpredictable functionalities, motifs, and scaffolds. Tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) is an effective method that assists the full elucidation of complicated NP structures. Ion activation methods play a key role in determining the fragmentation pathways and the structural information obtained from MS/MS. Electron-ion reaction-based dissociation (ExD) methods, including electron capture dissociation (ECD), electron transfer dissociation (ETD), electron-induced dissociation (EID), and electron detachment dissociation (EDD), can induce the breakage of specific chemical bonds and the generation of distinct fragment ions. This review article provides an overview of the mechanisms, instrumentation, and typical applications related to ExD MS/MS in the structural elucidation of NPs, primarly including lipids, oligosaccharides, glycoconjugates, metabolites, and pharmaceutical drugs. This work aims to reveal the capacity and potential of ExD mass spectrometry in analyzing NPs and consequently helping the NP communities to utilize the modern capabilities of MS/MS in the discovery and evaluation of novel NPs.

Sulfur Pentafluoride is a Preferred Reagent Cation for Negative Electron Transfer Dissociation

Negative mode proteome analysis offers access to unique portions of the proteome and several acidic post-translational modifications; however, traditional collision-based fragmentation methods fail to reliably provide sequence information for peptide anions. Negative electron transfer dissociation (NETD), on the other hand, can sequence precursor anions in a high-throughput manner. Similar to other ion-ion methods, NETD is most efficient with peptides of higher charge state because of the increased electrostatic interaction between reacting molecules. Here we demonstrate that NETD performance for lower charge state precursors can be improved by altering the reagent cation. Specifically, the recombination energy of the NETD reaction-largely dictated by the ionization energy (IE) of the reagent cation-can affect the extent of fragmentation. We compare the NETD reagent cations of C₁₆H₁₀^●+ (IE = 7.9 eV) and SF₅^●+ (IE = 9.6 eV) on a set of standard peptides, concluding that SF₅^●+ yields greater sequence ion generation. Subsequent proteome-scale nLC-MS/MS experiments comparing C₁₆H₁₀^●+ and SF₅^●+ further supported this outcome: analyses using SF₅^●+ yielded 4637 peptide spectral matches (PSMs) and 2900 unique peptides, whereas C₁₆H₁₀^●+ produced 3563 PSMs and 2231 peptides. The substantive gain in identification power with SF₅^●+ was largely driven by improved identification of doubly deprotonated precursors, indicating that increased NETD recombination energy can increase product ion yield for low charge density precursors. This work demonstrates that SF₅^●+ is a viable, if not favorable, reagent cation for NETD, and provides improved fragmentation over the commonly used fluoranthene reagent. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.

Principles of hydrogen radical mediated peptide/protein fragmentation during matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry

Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization in-source decay (MALDI-ISD) is a very easy way to obtain large sequence tags and, thereby, reliable identification of peptides and proteins. Recently discovered new matrices have enhanced the MALDI-ISD yield and opened new research avenues. The use of reducing and oxidizing matrices for MALDI-ISD of peptides and proteins favors the production of fragmentation pathways involving "hydrogen-abundant" and "hydrogen-deficient" radical precursors, respectively. Since an oxidizing matrix provides information on peptide/protein sequences complementary to that obtained with a reducing matrix, MALDI-ISD employing both reducing and oxidizing matrices is a potentially useful strategy for de novo peptide sequencing. Moreover, a pseudo-MS(3) method provides sequence information about N- and C-terminus extremities in proteins and allows N- and C-terminal side fragments to be discriminated within the complex MALDI-ISD mass spectrum. The combination of high mass resolution of a Fourier transform-ion cyclotron resonance (FTICR) analyzer and the software suitable for MALDI-ISD facilitates the interpretation of MALDI-ISD mass spectra. A deeper understanding of the MALDI-ISD process is necessary to fully exploit this method. Thus, this review focuses first on the mechanisms underlying MALDI-ISD processes, followed by a discussion of MALDI-ISD applications in the field of proteomics. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc., Mass Spec Rev 35:535-556, 2016.

213 nm Ultraviolet Photodissociation on Peptide Anions: Radical-Directed Fragmentation Patterns

Characterization of acidic peptides and proteins is greatly hindered due to lack of suitable analytical techniques. Here we present the implementation of 213 nm ultraviolet photodissociation (UVPD) in high-resolution quadrupole-Orbitrap mass spectrometer in negative polarity for peptide anions. Radical-driven backbone fragmentation provides 22 distinctive fragment ion types, achieving the complete sequence coverage for all reported peptides. Hydrogen-deficient radical anion not only promotes the cleavage of Cα-C bond but also stimulates the breaking of N-Cα and C-N bonds. Radical-directed loss of small molecules and specific side chain of amino acids are detected in these experiments. Radical containing side chain of amino acids (Tyr, Ser, Thr, and Asp) may possibly support the N-Cα backbone fragmentation. Proline comprising peptides exhibit the unusual fragment ions similar to reported earlier. Interestingly, basic amino acids such as Arg and Lys also stimulated the formation of abundant b and y ions of the related peptide anions. Loss of hydrogen atom from the charge-reduced radical anion and fragment ions are rationalized by time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) calculation, locating the potential energy surface (PES) of ππ* and repulsive πσ* excited states of a model amide system.

In-Source Decay Characterization of Isoaspartate and β-Peptides

Deamidation and the subsequent formation of isoaspartic acid (isoAsp) are common modifications of asparagine (Asn) residues in proteins. Differentiation of isoAsp and Asp residues is a challenging task owing to their similar chemical properties and identical molecular mass. Recent studies showed that they can be differentiated using electron capture dissociation (ECD) which generates diagnostic fragments c'+57 and z^•-57 specific to the isoAsp residue. However, the ECD approach is only applicable towards multiply charged precursor ions and generally does not work for β-amino acids other than isoAsp. In this study, the potential of in-source decay (ISD) in characterization of isoAsp and other β-amino acids was explored. For isoAsp-containing peptides, ISD with a conventional hydrogen-donating matrix produced ECD-like, c'+57 and z^•-57 diagnostic ions, even for singly charged precursor ions. For other β-amino acids, a hydrogen-accepting matrix was used to induce formation of site-specific a-14 ions from a synthetic β-analogue of substance P. These results indicated that ISD can be broadly applied for β-peptide characterization.

The Negative Mode Proteome with Activated Ion Negative Electron Transfer Dissociation (AI-NETD)

The field of proteomics almost uniformly relies on peptide cation analysis, leading to an underrepresentation of acidic portions of proteomes, including relevant acidic posttranslational modifications. Despite the many benefits negative mode proteomics can offer, peptide anion analysis remains in its infancy due mainly to challenges with high-pH reversed-phase separations and a lack of robust fragmentation methods suitable for peptide anion characterization. Here, we report the first implementation of activated ion negative electron transfer dissociation (AI-NETD) on the chromatographic timescale, generating 7,601 unique peptide identifications from Saccharomyces cerevisiae in single-shot nLC-MS/MS analyses of tryptic peptides-a greater than 5-fold increase over previous results with NETD alone. These improvements translate to identification of 1,106 proteins, making this work the first negative mode study to identify more than 1,000 proteins in any system. We then compare the performance of AI-NETD for analysis of peptides generated by five proteases (trypsin, LysC, GluC, chymotrypsin, and AspN) for negative mode analyses, identifying as many as 5,356 peptides (1,045 proteins) with LysC and 4,213 peptides (857 proteins) with GluC in yeast-characterizing 1,359 proteins in total. Finally, we present the first deep-sequencing approach for negative mode proteomics, leveraging offline low-pH reversed-phase fractionation prior to online high-pH separations and peptide fragmentation with AI-NETD. With this platform, we identified 3,467 proteins in yeast with trypsin alone and characterized a total of 3,730 proteins using multiple proteases, or nearly 83% of the expressed yeast proteome. This work represents the most extensive negative mode proteomics study to date, establishing AI-NETD as a robust tool for large-scale peptide anion characterization and making the negative mode approach a more viable platform for future proteomic studies.

UV photodissociation of proline-containing peptide ions: insights from molecular dynamics

UV photodissociation of proline-containing peptide ions leads to unusual product ions. In this paper, we report laser-induced dissociation of a series of proline-containing peptides at 213 nm. We observe specific fragmentation pathways corresponding to the formation of (y-2), (a + 2) and (b + 2) fragment ions. This was not observed at 266 nm or for peptides which do not contain proline residues. In order to obtain insights into the fragmentation dynamics at 213 nm, a small peptide (RPK for arginine-proline-lysine) was studied both theoretically and experimentally. Calculations of absorption spectra and non-adiabatic molecular dynamics (MD) were made. Second and third excited singlet states, S(2) and S(3), lie close to 213 nm. Non-adiabatic MD simulation starting from S(2) and S(3) shows that these transitions are followed by C-C and C-N bond activation close to the proline residue. After this first relaxation step, consecutive rearrangements and proton transfers are required to produce unusual (y-2), (a + 2) and (b + 2) fragment ions. These fragmentation mechanisms were confirmed by H/D exchange experiments.

Radical-driven peptide backbone dissociation tandem mass spectrometry

In recent years, a number of novel tandem mass spectrometry approaches utilizing radical-driven peptide gas-phase fragmentation chemistry have been developed. These approaches show a peptide fragmentation pattern quite different from that of collision-induced dissociation (CID). The peptide fragmentation features of these approaches share some in common with electron capture dissociation (ECD) or electron transfer dissociation (ETD) without the use of sophisticated equipment such as a Fourier-transform mass spectrometer. For example, Siu and coworkers showed that CID of transition metal (ligand)-peptide ternary complexes led to the formation of peptide radical ions through dissociative electron transfer (Chu et al., 2000. J Phys Chem B 104:3393-3397). The subsequent collisional activation of the generated radical ions resulted in a number of characteristic product ions, including a, c, x, z-type fragments and notable side-chain losses. Another example is the free radical initiated peptide sequencing (FRIPS) approach, in which Porter et al. and Beauchamp et al. independently introduced a free radical initiator to the primary amine group of the lysine side chain or N-terminus of peptides (Masterson et al., 2004. J Am Chem Soc 126:720-721; Hodyss et al., 2005 J Am Chem Soc 127: 12436-12437). Photodetachment of gaseous multiply charged peptide anions (Joly et al., 2008. J Am Chem Soc 130:13832-13833) and UV photodissociation of photolabile radical precursors including a C-I bond (Ly & Julian, 2008. J Am Chem Soc 130:351-358; Ly & Julian, 2009. J Am Soc Mass Spectrom 20:1148-1158) also provide another route to generate radical ions. In this review, we provide a brief summary of recent results obtained through the radical-driven peptide backbone dissociation tandem mass spectrometry approach.

Electron photodetachment dissociation for structural characterization of synthetic and bio-polymer anions

Tandem mass spectrometry (MS-MS) is a generic term evoking techniques dedicated to structural analysis, detection or quantification of molecules based on dissociation of a precursor ion into fragments. Searching for the most informative fragmentation patterns has led to the development of a vast array of activation modes that offer complementary ion reactivity and dissociation pathways. Collisional activation of ions using atoms, molecules or surface resulting in unimolecular dissociation of activated ions still plays a key role in tandem mass spectrometry. The discovery of electron capture dissociation (ECD) and then the development of other electron-ion or ion/ion reaction methods, constituted a significant breakthrough, especially for structural analysis of large biomolecules. Similarly, photon activation opened promising new frontiers in ion fragmentation owing to the ability of tightly controlled internal energy deposition and easy implementation on commercial instruments. Ion activation by photons includes slow heating methods such as infrared multiple photon dissociation (IRMPD) and black-body infrared radiative dissociation (BIRD) and higher energy methods like ultra-violet photodissociation (UVPD) and electron photo detachment dissociation (EPD). EPD occurs after UV irradiation of multiply negatively charged ions resulting in the formation of oxidized radical anions. The present paper reviews the hypothesis regarding the mechanisms of electron photo-detachment, radical formation and direct or activated dissociation pathways that support the observation of odd and even electron product ions. Finally, the value of EPD as a complementary structural analysis tool is illustrated through selected examples of synthetic polymers, oligonucleotides, polypeptides, lipids, and polysaccharides.

Photodissociation mass spectrometry: new tools for characterization of biological molecules

Photodissociation mass spectrometry combines the ability to activate and fragment ions using photons with the sensitive detection of the resulting product ions by mass spectrometry. This combination affords a versatile tool for characterization of biological molecules. The scope and breadth of photodissociation mass spectrometry have increased substantially over the past decade as new research groups have entered the field and developed a number of innovative applications that illustrate the ability of photodissociation to produce rich fragmentation patterns, to cleave bonds selectively, and to target specific molecules based on incorporation of chromophores. This review focuses on many of the key developments in photodissociation mass spectrometry over the past decade with a particular emphasis on its applications to biological molecules.

Protein primary structure using orthogonal fragmentation techniques in Fourier transform mass spectrometry

Proteomics analysis using tandem mass spectrometry requires informative backbone fragmentation of peptide ions. Collision-activated dissociation (CAD) of cations alone is not sufficiently informative to satisfy all requirements. Thus, there is a need to supplement CAD with a complementary fragmentation technique. Electron capture dissociation (ECD) is complementary to collisional excitation in terms of the cleavage of a different bond (N-Calpha versus C-N bond) and other properties. CAD-ECD combination improves protein identification and enables high-throughput de novo sequencing of peptides. ECD and its variants are also useful in mapping labile post-translational modifications in proteins and isomer differentiation; for example, distinguishing Ile from Leu, iso-Asp from Asp and even D- from L-amino acid residues.

Femtosecond laser-induced ionization/dissociation tandem mass spectrometry (fsLID-MS/MS) of deprotonated phosphopeptide anions

RATIONALE

Radical-directed dissociation techniques provide structural information which is complementary to that from conventional collision-induced dissociation (CID). The analysis of phosphopeptide anions is warranted due to their relatively acidic character. As femtosecond laser-induced ionization/dissociation tandem mass spectrometry (fsLID-MS/MS) is uniquely initiated by field ionization, an investigation is warranted to determine whether fsLID may provide novel analytical utility for phosphopeptide anions.

METHODS

Twenty-three synthetic deprotonated phosphopeptide anions were introduced into a three-dimensional quadrupole ion trap mass spectrometer via electrospray ionization. The ion trap was interfaced with a near-IR (802 nm) ultrashort-pulsed (35 fs FWHM) ultrahigh-powered (peak power ~10(14)  W/cm(2)) laser system. Performance comparisons are made with other techniques applied to phosphopeptide anion analysis, including CID, electron detachment dissociation (EDD), negative electron transfer dissociation (NETD), activated electron photodetachment dissociation (activated-EPD), and ultraviolet photodissociation (UVPD).

RESULTS

FsLID-MS/MS of multiply deprotonated phosphopeptide anions provides sequence information via phosphorylation-intact a/x ions in addition to other sequence ions, satellite ions, and side-chain losses. Novel fragmentation processes include selective c-ion formation N-terminal to Ser/Thr and a phosphorylation-specific correlation between xn -98 ion abundances and phosphorylation at the n(th) residue. Sequencing-quality data required about 30 s of signal averaging. fsLID-MS/MS of singly deprotonated phosphopeptides did not yield product anions with stable trajectories, despite significant depletion of the precursor.

CONCLUSIONS

Multiply deprotonated phosphopeptide anions were sequenced via negative-mode fsLID-MS/MS, with phosphosite localization facilitated by a/x ion series in addition to diagnostic x(n)-98 ions. fsLID-MS/MS is qualitatively competitive with other techniques. Further efficiency enhancements (e.g., implementation on a linear trap or/and higher pulse frequencies) may permit sequence analyses on chromatographic timescales.

Concurrent automated sequencing of the glycan and peptide portions of O-linked glycopeptide anions by ultraviolet photodissociation mass spectrometry

O-Glycopeptides are often acidic owing to the frequent occurrence of acidic saccharides in the glycan, rendering traditional proteomic workflows that rely on positive mode tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) less effective. In this report, we demonstrate the utility of negative mode ultraviolet photodissociation (UVPD) MS for the characterization of acidic O-linked glycopeptide anions. This method was evaluated for a series of singly and multiply deprotonated glycopeptides from the model glycoprotein kappa casein, resulting in production of both peptide and glycan product ions that afforded 100% sequence coverage of the peptide and glycan moieties from a single MS/MS event. The most abundant and frequent peptide sequence ions were a/x-type products which, importantly, were found to retain the labile glycan modifications. The glycan-specific ions mainly arose from glycosidic bond cleavages (B, Y, C, and Z ions) in addition to some less common cross-ring cleavages. On the basis of the UVPD fragmentation patterns, an automated database searching strategy (based on the MassMatrix algorithm) was designed that is specific for the analysis of glycopeptide anions by UVPD. This algorithm was used to identify glycopeptides from mixtures of glycosylated and nonglycosylated peptides, sequence both glycan and peptide moieties simultaneously, and pinpoint the correct site(s) of glycosylation. This methodology was applied to uncover novel site-specificity of the O-linked glycosylated OmpA/MotB from the "superbug" A. baumannii to help aid in the elucidation of the functional role that protein glycosylation plays in pathogenesis.

High-throughput database search and large-scale negative polarity liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry with ultraviolet photodissociation for complex proteomic samples

The use of ultraviolet photodissociation (UVPD) for the activation and dissociation of peptide anions is evaluated for broader coverage of the proteome. To facilitate interpretation and assignment of the resulting UVPD mass spectra of peptide anions, the MassMatrix database search algorithm was modified to allow automated analysis of negative polarity MS/MS spectra. The new UVPD algorithms were developed based on the MassMatrix database search engine by adding specific fragmentation pathways for UVPD. The new UVPD fragmentation pathways in MassMatrix were rigorously and statistically optimized using two large data sets with high mass accuracy and high mass resolution for both MS(1) and MS(2) data acquired on an Orbitrap mass spectrometer for complex Halobacterium and HeLa proteome samples. Negative mode UVPD led to the identification of 3663 and 2350 peptides for the Halo and HeLa tryptic digests, respectively, corresponding to 655 and 645 peptides that were unique when compared with electron transfer dissociation (ETD), higher energy collision-induced dissociation, and collision-induced dissociation results for the same digests analyzed in the positive mode. In sum, 805 and 619 proteins were identified via UVPD for the Halobacterium and HeLa samples, respectively, with 49 and 50 unique proteins identified in contrast to the more conventional MS/MS methods. The algorithm also features automated charge determination for low mass accuracy data, precursor filtering (including intact charge-reduced peaks), and the ability to combine both positive and negative MS/MS spectra into a single search, and it is freely open to the public. The accuracy and specificity of the MassMatrix UVPD search algorithm was also assessed for low resolution, low mass accuracy data on a linear ion trap. Analysis of a known mixture of three mitogen-activated kinases yielded similar sequence coverage percentages for UVPD of peptide anions versus conventional collision-induced dissociation of peptide cations, and when these methods were combined into a single search, an increase of up to 13% sequence coverage was observed for the kinases. The ability to sequence peptide anions and cations in alternating scans in the same chromatographic run was also demonstrated. Because ETD has a significant bias toward identifying highly basic peptides, negative UVPD was used to improve the identification of the more acidic peptides in conjunction with positive ETD for the more basic species. In this case, tryptic peptides from the cytosolic section of HeLa cells were analyzed by polarity switching nanoLC-MS/MS utilizing ETD for cation sequencing and UVPD for anion sequencing. Relative to searching using ETD alone, positive/negative polarity switching significantly improved sequence coverages across identified proteins, resulting in a 33% increase in unique peptide identifications and more than twice the number of peptide spectral matches.

5-nitrosalicylic Acid as a novel matrix for in-source decay in matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry

The matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization in-source decay (MALDI-ISD) of peptides and glycans was studied using an oxidizing chemical, 5-nitrosalicylic acid (5-NSA) as the matrix. The use of 5-NSA for the MALDI-ISD of peptides and glycans promoted fragmentation pathways involving "hydrogen-deficient" radical precursors. Hydrogen abstraction from peptides resulted in the production of a "hydrogen-deficient" peptide radical that contained a radical site on the amide nitrogen in the peptide backbone with subsequent radical-induced cleavage at the Cα-C bonds. Cleavage at the Cα-C bond leads to the production of an a (•)/x fragment pair and the radical a (•) ions then undergo further hydrogen abstraction to form a 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 at this site. 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. In contrast, "hydrogen-deficient" glycan radicals were generated by hydrogen abstraction from hydroxyl groups in glycans. Both glycosidic and cross-ring cleavages occurred as the result of the degradation of "hydrogen-deficient" glycan radicals. Cross-ring cleavage ions are potentially useful in linkage analysis, one of the most critical steps in the characterization of glycans. Moreover, isobaric glycans could be distinguished by structure specific ISD ions, and the molar ratio of glycan isomers in a mixture can be estimated from their fragment ions abundance ratios. MALDI-ISD with 5-NSA could be a useful method for the sequencing of peptides including the location of post-translational modifications, identification and semi-quantitative analysis of mixtures of glycan isomers.

Activated ion negative electron transfer dissociation of multiply charged peptide anions

We report the implementation and evaluation of activated ion negative electron transfer dissociation (AI-NETD) in order to enhance the analytical capabilities of NETD for the elucidation of doubly deprotonated peptide anions. The analytical figures-of-merit and fragmentation characteristics are compared for NETD alone and with supplemental collisional activation of the charge reduced precursors or infrared photoactivation of the entire ion population during the NETD reaction period. The addition of supplemental collisional activation of charge reduced precursor ions or infrared photoactivation of the entire ion population concomitant with the NETD reaction period significantly improves sequencing capabilities for peptide anions as evidenced by the greater abundances of product ions and overall sequence coverage. Neither of these two AI-NETD methods significantly alters the net fragmentation efficiencies relative to NETD; however, the sequence ion conversion percentages with respect to formation of diagnostic product ions are notably higher. Supplemental infrared photoactivation outperforms collisional activation for most of the peptide fragmentation metrics evaluated.

Peptide radical cations: gender determines dissociation chemistry

Peptide radicals play a significant role in biology as well as mass spectrometry. They can be differentiated into two groups: conventional hydrogen-deficient radicals, e.g. M(+•) as in electron ionization, and much more rare hydrogen-abundant radicals, e.g. [M+2H](+•), as in electron capture/transfer dissociation. The dissociation chemistries of these two types of radicals are vastly different. Both types tend to lose small molecules or radical groups, but the overlap between the losses from different radical types is minimal. The backbone cleavage for hydrogen-deficient radicals is dominated by Cα-C cleavage (a (•), x fragments) and for hydrogen-abundant radicals-by N-Cα cleavage (c, z (•) ions). The latter types of fragmentation produces more sequencing information than the former. Therefore, hydrogen-abundant peptide radicals are more valuable in mass spectrometry. The efficiency of the main method of their production, electron capture/transfer dissociation, is however limited by charge reduction. Alternative methods of generation of hydrogen-abundant radicals are needed to improve the sequencing capabilities of mass spectrometry.

Peptide backbone fragmentation initiated by side-chain loss at cysteine residue in matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization in-source decay mass spectrometry

Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization in-source decay (MALDI-ISD) is initiated by hydrogen transfer from matrix molecules to the carbonyl oxygen of peptide backbone with subsequent radical-induced cleavage leading to c'/z• fragments pair. MALDI-ISD is a very powerful method to obtain long sequence tags from proteins or to do de novo sequencing of peptides. Besides classical fragmentation, MALDI-ISD also shows specific fragments for which the mechanism of formation enlightened the MALDI-ISD process. In this study, the MALDI-ISD mechanism is reviewed, and a specific mechanism is studied in details: the N-terminal side of Cys residue (Xxx-Cys) is described to promote the generation of c' and w fragments in MALDI-ISD. Our data suggest that for sequences containing Xxx-Cys motifs, the N-Cα bond cleavage occurs following the hydrogen attachment to the thiol group of Cys side-chain. The c•/w fragments pair is formed by side-chain loss of the Cys residue with subsequent radical-induced cleavage at the N-Cα bond located at the left side (N-terminal direction) of the Cys residue. This fragmentation pathway preferentially occurs at free Cys residue and is suppressed when the cysteines are involved in disulfide bonds. Hydrogen attachment to alkylated Cys residues using iodoacetamide gives free Cys residue by the loss of •CH2CONH2 radical. The presence of alkylated Cys residue also suppress the formation of c•/w fragments pair via the (Cβ)-centered radical, whereas w fragment is still observed as intense signal. In this case, the z• fragment formed by hydrogen attachment of carbonyl oxygen followed side-chain loss at alkylated Cys leads to a w fragment. Hydrogen attachment on peptide backbone and side-chain of Cys residue occurs therefore competitively during MALDI-ISD process.

Electron detachment dissociation of underivatized chloride-adducted oligosaccharides

Chloride anion attachment has previously been shown to aid determination of saccharide anomeric configuration and generation of linkage information in negative ion post-source decay MALDI tandem mass spectrometry. Here, we employ electron detachment dissociation (EDD) and collision activated dissociation (CAD) for the structural characterization of underivatized oligosaccharides bearing a chloride ion adduct. Both neutral and sialylated oligosaccharides are examined, including maltoheptaose, an asialo biantennary glycan (NA2), disialylacto-N-tetraose (DSLNT), and two LS tetrasaccharides (LSTa and LSTb). Gas-phase chloride-adducted species are generated by negative ion mode electrospray ionization. EDD and CAD spectra of chloride-adducted oligosaccharides are compared to the corresponding spectra for doubly deprotonated species not containing a chloride anion to assess the role of chloride adduction in the stimulation of alternative fragmentation pathways and altered charge locations allowing detection of additional product ions. In all cases, EDD of singly chloridated and singly deprotonated species resulted in an increase in observed cross-ring cleavages, which are essential to providing saccharide linkage information. Glycosidic cleavages also increased in EDD of chloride-adducted oligosaccharides to reveal complementary structural information compared to traditional (non-chloride-assisted) EDD and CAD. Results indicate that chloride adduction is of interest in alternative anion activation methods such as EDD for oligosaccharide structural characterization.

Gas-phase peptide sulfinyl radical ions: formation and unimolecular dissociation

A variety of peptide sulfinyl radical (RSO•) ions with a well-defined radical site at the cysteine side chain were formed at atmospheric pressure (AP), sampled into a mass spectrometer, and investigated via collision-induced dissociation (CID). The radical ion formation was based on AP reactions between oxidative radicals and peptide ions containing single inter-chain disulfide bond or free thiol group generated from nanoelectrospray ionization (nanoESI). The radical induced reactions allowed large flexibility in forming peptide radical ions independent of ion polarity (protonated or deprotonated) or charge state (singly or multiply charged). More than 20 peptide sulfinyl radical ions in either positive or negative ion mode were subjected to low energy collisional activation on a triple-quadrupole/linear ion trap mass spectrometer. The competition between radical- and charge-directed fragmentation pathways was largely affected by the presence of mobile protons. For peptide sulfinyl radical ions with reduced proton mobility (i.e., singly protonated, containing basic amino acid residues), loss of 62 Da (CH(2)SO), a radical-initiated dissociation channel, was dominant. For systems with mobile protons, this channel was suppressed, while charge-directed amide bond cleavages were preferred. The polarity of charge was found to significantly alter the radical-initiated dissociation channels, which might be related to the difference in stability of the product ions in different ion charge polarities.

Systematic comparison of ultraviolet photodissociation and electron transfer dissociation for peptide anion characterization

Ultraviolet photodissociation at 193 nm (UVPD) and negative electron transfer dissociation (NETD) were compared to establish their utility for characterizing acidic proteomes with respect to sequence coverage distributions (a measure of product ion signals across the peptide backbone), sequence coverage percentages, backbone cleavage preferences, and fragmentation differences relative to precursor charge state. UVPD yielded significantly more diagnostic information compared with NETD for lower charge states (n ≤ 2), but both methods were comparable for higher charged species. While UVPD often generated a more heterogeneous array of sequence-specific products (b-, y-, c-, z-, Y-, d-, and w-type ions in addition to a- and x- type ions), NETD usually created simpler sets of a/x-type ions. LC-MS/UVPD and LC-MS/NETD analysis of protein digests utilizing high pH mobile phases coupled with automated database searching via modified versions of the MassMatrix algorithm was undertaken. UVPD generally outperformed NETD in stand-alone searches due to its ability to efficiently sequence both lower and higher charge states with rapid activation times. However, when combined with traditional positive mode CID, both methods yielded complementary information with significantly increased sequence coverage percentages and unique peptide identifications over that of just CID alone.

Tyrosine deprotonation yields abundant and selective backbone cleavage in peptide anions upon negative electron transfer dissociation and ultraviolet photodissociation

Tyrosine deprotonation in peptides yields preferential electron detachment upon NETD or UVPD, resulting in prominent N-Cα bond cleavage N-terminal to the tyrosine residue. UVPD of iodo-tyrosine-modified peptides was used to generate localized radicals on neutral tyrosine side chains by homolytic cleavage of the C-I bond. Subsequent collisional activation of the radical species yielded the same preferential cleavage of the adjacent N-terminal N-Cα bond. LC-MS/MS analysis of a tryptic digest of BSA demonstrated that these cleavages are regularly observed for peptides when using high-pH mobile phases.

Identification and relative-quantification of glycans by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization in-source decay with hydrogen abstraction

The use of specific matrixes allows enhancing the scope of in-source decay (ISD) applications in matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) thanks to the specificity of analyte-matrix chemistry. The use of an oxidizing matrix, 5-nitrosalicylic acid (5-NSA), for MALDI-ISD of glycans is shown to promote fragmentation pathways involving radical precursors. Both glycosidic and cross-ring cleavages are promoted by hydrogen abstraction from hydroxyl group of glycans by 5-NSA molecules. Cross-ring cleavage ions are potentially useful in linkage analysis, one of the most critical steps of glycan characterization. Moreover, we show here that isobaric glycans could be distinguished by structure specific ISD ions and that the molar ratio of glycan isomers in the mixture can be estimated from their fragment ions abundance. The use of 5-NSA also opens the possibility to perform pseudo-MS(3) analysis of glycans. Therefore, MALDI-ISD with 5-NSA is a useful method for identification of glycans and semiquantitative analysis of mixture of glycan isomers.

Characterization of O-sulfopeptides by negative ion mode tandem mass spectrometry: superior performance of negative ion electron capture dissociation

Positive ion mode collision-activated dissociation tandem mass spectrometry (CAD MS/MS) of O-sulfopeptides precludes determination of sulfonated sites due to facile proton-driven loss of the highly labile sulfonate groups. A previously proposed method for localizing peptide and protein O-sulfonation involves derivatization of nonsulfonated tyrosines followed by positive ion CAD MS/MS of the corresponding modified sulfopeptides for diagnostic sulfonate loss. This indirect method relies upon specific and complete derivatization of nonsulfonated tyrosines. Alternative MS/MS activation methods, including positive ion metastable atom-activated dissociation (MAD) and metal-assisted electron transfer dissociation (ETD) or electron capture dissociation (ECD) provide varying degrees of sulfonate retention. Sulfonate retention has also been reported following negative ion MAD and electron detachment dissociation (EDD), which also operates in negative ion mode in which sulfonate groups are less labile than in positive ion mode. However, an MS/MS activation technique that can effectively preserve sulfonate groups while providing extensive backbone fragmentation (translating to sequence information, including sulfonated sites) with little to no noninformative small molecule neutral loss has not previously been realized. Here, we report that negative ion CAD, EDD, and negative ETD (NETD) result in sulfonate retention mainly at higher charge states with varying degrees of fragmentation efficiency and sequence coverage. Similar to previous observations from CAD of sulfonated glycosaminoglycan anions, higher charge states translate to a higher probability of deprotonation at the sulfonate groups thus yielding charge-localized fragmentation without loss of the sulfonate groups. However, consequently, higher sulfonate retention comes at the price of lower sequence coverage in negative ion CAD. Fragmentation efficiency/sequence coverage averaged 19/6% and 33/20% in EDD and NETD, respectively, both of which are only applicable to multiply-charged anions. In contrast, the recently introduced negative ion ECD showed an average fragmentation efficiency of 69% and an average sequence coverage of 82% with complete sulfonate retention from singly- and doubly-deprotonated sulfopeptide anions.

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.

Characterizing peptide neutral losses induced by negative electron-transfer dissociation (NETD)

We implemented negative electron-transfer dissociation (NETD) on a hybrid ion trap/Orbitrap mass spectrometer to conduct ion/ion reactions using peptide anions and radical reagent cations. In addition to sequence-informative ladders of a•- and x-type fragment ions, NETD generated intense neutral loss peaks corresponding to the entire or partial side-chain cleavage from amino acids constituting a given peptide. Thus, a critical step towards the characterization of this recently introduced fragmentation technique is a systematic study of synthetic peptides to identify common neutral losses and preferential fragmentation pathways. Examining 46 synthetic peptides with high mass accuracy and high resolution analysis permitted facile determination of the chemical composition of each neutral loss. We identified 19 unique neutral losses from 14 amino acids and three modified amino acids, and assessed the specificity and sensitivity of each neutral loss using a database of 1542 confidently identified peptides generated from NETD shotgun experiments employing high-pH separations and negative electrospray ionization. As residue-specific neutral losses indicate the presence of certain amino acids, we determined that many neutral losses have potential diagnostic utility. We envision this catalogue of neutral losses being incorporated into database search algorithms to improve peptide identification specificity and to further advance characterization of the acidic proteome.

Analysis of the acidic proteome with negative electron-transfer dissociation mass spectrometry

We describe the first implementation of negative electron-transfer dissociation (NETD) on a hybrid ion trap-orbitrap mass spectrometer and its application to high-throughput sequencing of peptide anions. NETD, coupled with high pH separations, negative electrospray ionization (ESI), and an NETD compatible version of OMSSA, is part of a complete workflow that includes the formation, interrogation, and sequencing of peptide anions. Together these interlocking pieces facilitated the identification of more than 2000 unique peptides from Saccharomyces cerevisiae representing the most comprehensive analysis of peptide anions by tandem mass spectrometry to date. The same S. cerevisiae samples were interrogated using traditional, positive modes of peptide LC-MS/MS analysis (e.g., acidic LC separations, positive ESI, and collision activated dissociation), and the resulting peptide identifications of the different workflows were compared. Due to a decreased flux of peptide anions and a tendency to produce lowly charged precursors, the NETD-based LC-MS/MS workflow was not as sensitive as the positive mode methods. However, the use of NETD readily permits access to underrepresented acidic portions of the proteome by identifying peptides that tend to have lower pI values. As such, NETD improves sequence coverage, filling out the acidic portions of proteins that are often overlooked by the other methods.

Mass spectrometric characterization of phosphorylated peptides using MALDI in-source decay via redox reactions

Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization in-source decay (MALDI-ISD) has been used for characterization of a phosphorylated peptides and proteins because labile phosphate group is not lost during the MALDI-ISD process. The conventional MALDI-ISD is initiated by the hydrogen transfer from reducing matrix molecules to peptide backbone, leading to c'- and z'-series ions. In contrast, when an oxidizing chemical 5-nitrosalicylic acid (5-NSA) is served as the MALDI-ISD matrix, a- and x-series ions are specifically generated by hydrogen abstraction from peptide backbone to matrix molecule. The 5-NSA provides useful complementary information to the conventional MALDI-ISD for the analysis of amino acid sequencing and site localization of phosphorylation in peptides. The MALDI-ISD with reducing and oxidizing matrix could be a useful method for the de novo peptide sequencing.

Electron detachment dissociation and negative ion infrared multiphoton dissociation of electrosprayed intact proteins

In top-down proteomics, intact gaseous proteins are fragmented in a mass spectrometer by, e.g., electron capture dissociation (ECD) to obtain structural information. By far, most top-down approaches involve dissociation of protein cations. However, in electrospray ionization of phosphoproteins, the high acidity of phosphate may contribute to the formation of intramolecular hydrogen bonds or salt bridges, which influence subsequent fragmentation behavior. Other acidic proteins or proteins with regions containing multiple acidic residues may also be affected similarly. Negative ion mode, on the other hand, may enhance deprotonation and unfolding of multiply phosphorylated or highly acidic protein regions. Here, activated ion electron detachment dissociation (AI-EDD) and negative ion infrared multiphoton dissociation (IRMPD) were employed to investigate the fragmentation of intact proteins, including multiply phosphorylated β-casein, calmodulin, and glycosylated ribonuclease B. Compared to AI-ECD and positive ion IRMPD, AI-EDD and negative ion IRMPD provide complementary protein sequence information, particularly in regions with high acidity, including the multiply phosphorylated region of β-casein.

Electron induced dissociation of singly deprotonated peptides

Dissociation of singly charged species is more challenging compared with that of multiply charged precursor ions because singly charged ions are generally more stable. In collision activated dissociation (CAD), singly charged ions also gain less kinetic energy in a fixed electric field compared with multiply charged species. Furthermore, ion-electron and ion-ion reactions that frequently provide complementary and more extensive fragmentation compared with CAD typically require multiply charged precursor ions. Here, we investigate electron induced dissociation (EID) of singly deprotonated peptides and compare the EID fragmentation patterns with those observed in negative ion mode CAD. Fragmentation induced upon electron irradiation and collisional activation is not specific and results in the formation of a wide range of product ions, including b-, y-, a-, x-, c-, and z-type ions. Characteristic amino acid side chain losses are detected in both techniques. However, differences are also observed between EID and CAD spectra of the same species, including formation of odd-electron species not seen in CAD, in EID. Furthermore, EID frequently results in more extensive fragmentation compared with CAD. For modified peptides, EID resulted in retention of sulfonation and phosphorylation, allowing localization of the modification site. The observed differences are likely due to both vibrational and electronic excitation in EID, whereas only the former process occurs in CAD.

Specific cleavage at peptide backbone Cα-C and CO-N bonds during matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization in-source decay mass spectrometry with 5-nitrosalicylic acid as the matrix

The use of 5-nitrosalicylic acid (5-NSA) as a matrix for in-source decay (ISD) of peptides during matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) is described herein. Mechanistically, the decay process is initiated by a hydrogen abstraction from a peptide backbone amide nitrogen by 5-NSA. Hydrogen abstraction results in formation of an oxidized peptide containing a radical amide nitrogen. Subsequently, the C(α)-C bond N-terminal to the peptide bond is cleaved to form an a·/x fragment pair. The C(α)-C bonds C-terminal to Gly residues were less susceptible to cleavage than were those of other residues. C(α)-C bonds N-terminal to Pro and Sar residues were not cleaved by the aforementioned mechanism; instead, after hydrogen abstraction from a Pro or Sar C(α)-H bond, the peptide bond N-terminal to the Pro was cleaved yielding b- and y-series ions. We also show that fragments produced by MALDI 5-NSA-induced ISD were formed independently of the ionization process.

Visible and ultraviolet spectroscopy of gas phase protein ions

Optical spectroscopy has contributed enormously to our knowledge of the structure and dynamics of atoms and molecules and is now emerging as a cornerstone of the gas phase methods available for investigating biomolecular ions. This article focuses on the UV and visible spectroscopy of peptide and protein ions stored in ion traps, with emphasis placed on recent results obtained on protein polyanions, by electron photodetachment experiments. We show that among a large number of possible de-excitation pathways, the relaxation of biomolecular polyanions is mainly achieved by electron emission following photo-excitation in electronically excited states. Electron photodetachment is a fast process that occurs prior to relaxation on vibrational degrees of freedom. Electron photodetachment yield can then be used to record gas phase action spectra for systems as large as entire proteins, without the limitation of system size that would arise from energy redistribution on numerous modes and prevent fragmentation after the absorption of a photon. The optical activity of proteins in the near UV is directly related to the electronic structure and optical absorption of aromatic amino acids (Trp, Phe and Tyr). UV spectra for peptides and proteins containing neutral, deprotonated and radical aromatic amino acids were recorded. They displayed strong bathochromic shifts. In particular, the results outline the privileged role played by open shell ions in molecular spectroscopy which, in the case of biomolecules, is directly related to their reactivity and biological functions. The optical shifts observed are sufficient to provide unambiguous fingerprints of the electronic structure of chromophores without the requirement of theoretical calculations. They constitute benchmarks for calculating the absorption spectra of chromophores embedded in entire proteins and could be used in the future to study biochemical processes in the gas phase involving charge transfer in aromatic amino acids, such as in the mediation of electron transfer or redox reactions. We then addressed the important question of the sensitivity of protein optical spectra to the intrinsic properties of protein ions, including conformation, charge state, etc., and to environmental factors. We report optical spectra for different charge states of insulin, for ubiquitin starting from native and denaturated solutions, and for apo-myoglobin protein. All these spectra are compared critically to spectra recorded in solution, in order to assess solvent effects. We also report the spectra of peptides complexed with metal cations and show that complexation gives rise to new optical transitions related to charge transfer types of excitation. The perspectives of this work include integrative approaches where UV-Vis spectroscopy could, for example, be combined with ion mobility spectrometry and high level calculations for protein structural characterization. It could also be used in spectroscopy to probe biological processes in the gas phase, with different light sources including VUV radiation (to probe different types of excitations) and ultra short pulses with time and phase modulation (to probe and control the dynamics of de-excitation or charge transfer events), and with the derivatization of proteins with chromophores to modulate their optical properties. We also envision that photo-excitation will play an important role in the future to produce intermediates with new chemical and reactive properties. Another promising route is to conduct activated electron photodetachment dissociation experiments.

Tandem mass spectrometry strategies for phosphoproteome analysis

Protein phosphorylation is involved in nearly all essential biochemical pathways and the deregulation of phosphorylation events has been associated with the onset of numerous diseases. A multitude of tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) and multistage MS/MS (i.e., MS(n) ) strategies have been developed in recent years and have been applied toward comprehensive phosphoproteomic analysis, based on the interrogation of proteolytically derived phosphopeptides. However, the utility of each of these MS/MS and MS(n) approaches for phosphopeptide identification and characterization, including phosphorylation site localization, is critically dependant on the properties of the precursor ion (e.g., polarity and charge state), the specific ion activation method that is employed, and the underlying gas-phase ion chemistries, mechanisms and other factors that influence the gas-phase fragmentation behavior of phosphopeptide ions. This review therefore provides an overview of recent studies aimed at developing an improved understanding of these issues, and highlights the advantages and limitations of both established (e.g., CID) and newly maturing (e.g., ECD, ETD, photodissociation, etc.) yet complementary, ion activation techniques. This understanding is expected to facilitate the continued refinement of existing MS/MS strategies, and the development of novel MS/MS techniques for phosphopeptide analysis, with great promise in providing new insights into the role of protein phosphorylation on normal biological function, and in the onset and progression of disease. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc., Mass Spec Rev 30:600-625, 2011.

Metastable atom-activated dissociation mass spectrometry of phosphorylated and sulfonated peptides in negative ion mode

The dissociation behavior of phosphorylated and sulfonated peptide anions was explored using metastable atom-activated dissociation mass spectrometry (MAD-MS) and collision-induced dissociation (CID). A beam of high kinetic energy helium (He) metastable atoms was exposed to isolated phosphorylated and sulfonated peptides in the 3- and 2- charge states. Unlike CID, where phosphate losses are dominant, the major dissociation channels observed using MAD were C(α) - C peptide backbone cleavages and neutral losses of CO(2), H(2)O, and [CO(2) + H(2)O] from the charge reduced (oxidized) product ion, consistent with an electron detachment dissociation (EDD) mechanism such as Penning ionization. Regardless of charge state or modification, MAD provides ample backbone cleavages with little modification loss, which allows for unambiguous PTM site determination. The relative abundance of certain fragment ions in MAD is also demonstrated to be somewhat sensitive to the number and location of deprotonation sites, with backbone cleavage somewhat favored adjacent to deprotonated sites like aspartic acid residues. MAD provides a complementary dissociation technique to CID, ECD, ETD, and EDD for peptide sequencing and modification identification. MAD offers the unique ability to analyze highly acidic peptides that contain few to no basic amino acids in either negative or positive ion mode.