Reproducibility of a solid-phase trypsin microreactor for peptide mapping by capillary electrophoresis

Peptide mapping of proteins by capillary electromigration methods

This review article provides a wide overview of important developments and applications of capillary electromigration methods in the area of peptide mapping of proteins in the period 1997-mid-2022, including review articles on this topic. It deals with all major aspects of peptide mapping by capillary electromigration methods: i) precleavage sample preparation involving purification, preconcentration, denaturation, reduction and alkylation of protein(s) to be analyzed, ii) generation of peptide fragments by off-line or on-line enzymatic and/or chemical cleavage of protein(s), iii) postcleavage preparation of the generated peptide mixture for capillary electromigration separation, iv) separation of the complex peptide mixtures by one-, two- and multidimensional capillary electromigration methods coupled with mass spectrometry detection, and v) a large application of peptide mapping for variable purposes, such as qualitative analysis of monoclonal antibodies and other protein biopharmaceuticals, monitoring of posttranslational modifications, determination of primary structure and investigation of function of proteins in biochemical and clinical research, characterization of proteins of variable origin as well as for protein and peptide identification in proteomic and peptidomic studies.

Immobilization of trypsin onto porous methacrylate-based monolith for flow-through protein digestion and its potential application to chiral separation using liquid chromatography

Monolithic columns for analytical applications have attracted the researcher's attention. In this work, the laboratory-made organic-polymer monolithic column is modified with trypsin and further applied as a nanobiocatalyst microreactor and a stationary phase for separating chiral compounds by liquid chromatography. The monolith was synthesized by in-situ copolymerization of glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EDMA) or trimethylolpropane trimethacrylate (TRIM) as a crosslinking agent, with porogen of 1,4-butanediol/propanol/water (4:7:1 v/v) and AIBN as the radical polymerization initiator inside PEEK and silicosteel tubings (1.0 mm i.d × 100 mm) at 60 °C for 12 h. A total monomer ratio (%T) and crosslinking agent (%C) of 40:25 and 28:12 were applied to prepare poly-(GMA-co-EDMA) and poly-(GMA-co-TRIM), respectively. The produced monoliths were further modified by introducing trypsin (10 mg/L) through the ring-opening reaction of the epoxide group existing in the monolithic column. The trypsin-immobilized poly-(GMA-co-EDMA) monolithic column was applied as the nanobiocatalyst microreactor for online/flow-through and rapid digestion of β-casein sample into its peptide fragments. The trypsin-immobilized poly-(GMA-co-TRIM) column has potential application to be used as the HPLC stationary phase for the separation of R/S-citronellal enantiomers.

Multi-lumen capillary based trypsin micro-reactor for the rapid digestion of proteins

In this work we evaluated a novel microreactor prepared using a surface modified, high surface-to-volume ratio multi-lumen fused silica capillary (MLC). The MLC investigated contained 126 parallel channels, each of 4 μm internal diameter. The MLC, along with conventional fused silica capillaries of 25 μm and 50 μm internal diameter, were treated by (3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane (APTES) and then modified with gold nanoparticles, of ∼20 nm in diameter, to ultimately provide immobilisation sites for the proteolytic enzyme, trypsin. The modified capillaries and MLCs were characterised and profiled using non-invasive scanning capacitively coupled contactless conductivity detection (sC4D). The sC4D profiles confirmed a significantly higher amount of enzyme was immobilised to the MLC when compared to the fused silica capillaries, attributable to the increased surface to volume ratio. The MLC was used for dynamic protein digestion, where peptide fragments were collected and subjected to off-line chromatographic evaluation. The digestion was achieved with the MLC reactor, using a residence time of just 1.26 min, following which the HPLC peak associated with the intact protein decreased by >70%. The MLC reactors behaved similarly to the classical in vitro or in-solution approach, but provided a reduction in digestion time, and fewer peaks associated with trypsin auto-digestion, which is common using in-solution digestion. The digestion of cytochrome C using both the MLC-IMER and the in-solution approach, resulted in a sequence coverage of ∼80%. The preparation of the MLC microreactor was reproducible with <2.5% RSD between reactors (n = 3) as determined by sC4D.

Preparation and characterization of a packed bead immobilized trypsin reactor integrated into a PDMS microfluidic chip for rapid protein digestion

This paper demonstrates the design, efficiency and applicability of a simple, inexpensive and high sample throughput microchip immobilized enzymatic reactor (IMER) for rapid protein digestion. The IMER contains conventional silica particles with covalently immobilized trypsin packed inside of a poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) microchip channel (10mm×1mm×35µm). The microchip consists of 9 different channels, enabling 9 simultaneous protein digestions. Trypsin was covalently immobilized using carbodiimide activation, the ideal trypsin/silica particle ratio (i.e. measured mass ratio before the immobilization reaction) was determined. The amount of immobilized trypsin was 10-15μg trypsin for 1mg silica particle. Migration times of CZE peptide maps showed good repeatability and reproducibility (RSD%=0.02-0.31%). The IMER maintained its activity for 2 months, in this period it was used effectively for rapid proteolysis. Four proteins (myoglobin, lysozyme, hemoglobin and albumin) in a wide size range (15-70kDa) were digested to demonstrate the applicability of the reactor. Their CZE peptide maps were compared to peptide maps obtained from standard in-solution digestion of the four proteins. The number of peptide peaks correlated well with the theoretically expected peptide number in both cases, the peak patterns of the electropherograms were similar, however, digestion with the microchip IMER requires only <10s, while in-solution digestion takes 16h. LC-MS/MS peptide mapping was also carried out, the four proteins were identified with satisfying sequence coverages (29-50%), trypsin autolysis peptides were not detected. The protein content of human serum was digested with the IMER and with in-solution digestion.

An enzyme–inorganic hybrid nanoflower based immobilized enzyme reactor with enhanced enzymatic activity

Ca₃(PO₄)₂–ChT hybrid nanoflowers were synthesized by a facile approach. The nanoflowers exhibited an enhanced enzymatic activity and can be used as an immobilized enzyme reactor (IMER) for highly efficient protein digestion.

Uncovering immobilized trypsin digestion features from large-scale proteome data generated by high-resolution mass spectrometry

Immobilized trypsin produces very fast protein digestion, which is attractive for application to high throughput bottom-up proteomics. While there is a rich literature on the preparation of immobilized trypsin, there are very few studies that investigate its application to complex proteomic samples. In this work, we compared solution-phase trypsin with trypsin immobilized on magnetic microspheres for digestion of two complex proteomes, Escherichia coli and the MCF7 cell line. The digests were separated by HPLC, and detected with a Q-Exactive mass spectrometer, which generated high resolution and high quality parent- and fragment-ion mass spectra. The data were analyzed using MaxQuant. We make several conclusions about the features of immobilized trypsin digestion of complex proteomes. First, both immobilized and solution-phase trypsin generate peptides that sample the same protein pool. Second, immobilized trypsin can digest complex proteomes two orders of magnitude faster than solution-phase trypsin while retaining similar numbers of protein identifications and proteome depth. Digestion using immobilized trypsin for 5-min produces a similar number of missed cleavages as solution-based trypsin digestion for 4-h; digestion using immobilized trypsin for 20-min produces a similar number of missed cleavages as solution-based trypsin digestion for 12-h. Third, immobilized trypsin produces quantitatively reproducible digestion of complex proteomes. Finally, there is small but measurable loss of peptide due to non-specific adsorption to the immobilization matrix. This adsorption generates a bias against detection of basic peptides.

Facile synthesis of enzyme–inorganic hybrid nanoflowers and their application as an immobilized trypsin reactor for highly efficient protein digestion

Hybrid nanoflowers were synthesized by a novel approach. The nanoflowers exhibited an enhanced enzymatic activity and can be used as an immobilized enzyme reactor (IMER) for highly efficient protein digestion.

Development of glutaraldehyde-crosslinked chymotrypsin and an in situ immobilized enzyme microreactor with peptide mapping by capillary electrophoresis

Immobilized proteolytic enzymes present several advantages over their soluble form, not the least of which is suppression of autoproteolysis peaks even at high enzyme-to-substrate ratios. We have made immobilized chymotrypsin by directly crosslinking it with glutaraldehyde to produce polymeric particles. Digestion of two model substrates using the particles was followed by CE peptide mapping with detection by UV absorbance or LIF. Results showed that autoproteolysis was highly suppressed and that different storage conditions of the particles in the short term (24 h) did not affect digestion of denatured BSA. As well, the chymotrypsin particles were indifferent to the presence of fluorescein groups on a casein substrate. Glutaraldehyde crosslinking of chymotrypsin inside a fused silica capillary column to make an immobilized enzyme reactor (IMER) was achieved in a series of reagent addition and washing steps, entirely automated using a commercial CE instrument. Digestion of myoglobin in the IMER for 30 min at 37°C followed by peptide mapping by CE-MS of the collected digest allowed identification of 17 chymotryptic peptides of myoglobin, or 83% primary sequence coverage.

Enzyme inhibitor screening by electrospray mass spectrometry with immobilized enzyme on magnetic silica microspheres

In this study, a novel technique for screening inhibitors by electrospray mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) with immobilized enzyme on magnetic microspheres has been demonstrated. First, the model enzyme acetylcholinesterase (AChE) is immobilized onto the 3-glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane (GLYMO)-modified magnetic silica microspheres. AChE activity was monitored by biochemical assay that is based on mixing of AChE immobilized microspheres and model substrate acetylcholine, separating and detecting the product through ESI-MS. Stability of the enzyme-immobilized microspheres was investigated. No apparent loss of enzyme activity was observed after fivefold reuse of AChE-immobilized microspheres. The enzyme-immobilized bioassay was used to effectively identify AChE inhibitors among two standard samples, huperzine A and huperzine B, and their source herbal Huperzia serrata, all of which were spiked into the substrate. The inhibition was determined by measuring a decrease of product formation using ESI-MS.

Novel microwave-assisted digestion by trypsin-immobilized magnetic nanoparticles for proteomic analysis

In this study, a novel microwave-assisted protein digestion method was developed using trypsin-immobilized magnetic nanoparticles (TIMNs). The magnetic nanoparticles worked as not only substrate for enzyme immobilization, but also excellent microwave irradiation absorber and, thus, improved the efficiency of microwave-assisted digestion greatly. Three standard proteins, bovine serum albumin (BSA), myoglobin, and cytochrome c, were used to optimize the conditions of this novel digestion method. With the optimized conditions, peptide fragments produced in very short time (only 15 s) could be identified successfully by MALDI-TOF-MS. When it was compared to the conventional in-solution digestion (12 h), equivalent or better digestion efficiency was observed. Even when protein quantity was as low as micrograms, this novel digestion method still could digest proteins successfully, while the same samples by conventional in-solution digestion failed. Moreover, with an external magnetic field, the enzyme could be removed easily and reused. It was verified that, after 4 replicate runs, the TIMNs still kept high activity. To further confirm the efficiency of this rapid digestion method for proteome analysis, it was applied to the protein extract of rat liver. Without any preparation and prefractionation processing, the entire proteome digested by TIMNs in 15 s went through LC-ESI-MS/MS direct analysis. The whole shotgun proteomic experiment was finished in only 1 h with the identification of 313 proteins ( p < 0.01). This new application of TIMNs in microwave-assisted protein digestion really opens a route for large-scale proteomic analysis.

On-chip enzymatic microreactor using trypsin-immobilized superparamagnetic nanoparticles for highly efficient proteolysis

An easily replaceable microchip enzymatic microreactor has been fabricated based on the glass microchip with trypsin-immobilized superparamagnetic nanoparticles. Magnetic nanoparticles with small size (50 nm in diameter) and strong magnetism were synthesized. At first, amine-functionalized magnetic nanoparticles with high magnetic responsivity and excellent dispersibility were prepared through a facile one-pot strategy. Then, magnetic nanoparticles were functionalized with numerous aldehyde (-CHO) groups by treating the as-synthesized, amine-functionalized magnetic nanoparticles with glutaraldehyde. Finally, immobilization of trypsin onto the aldehyde-functionalized magnetic nanoparticles was achieved through reaction of the aldehyde groups with amine groups of trypsin. The prepared magnetic nanoparticles were then locally packed onto the glass microchip by the application of a strong magnetic field using a magnet to form an on-chip magnetic nanoparticles packing bed. Capability of the proteolytic microreactor was demonstrated by cytochrome c, bovine serum albumin and myoglobin as model proteins. The digestion products were characterized using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry with sequence coverage of 83%, 43% and 79% observed, respectively. Complete protein digestion was achieved in a short time (10 s) under the flow rate of 5 microL/min. These results are expected to open up a new possibility for the proteolysis analysis as well as a new application of magnetic nanoparticles. It is easy to replace the nanoparticles and make the new microreactor. It takes less than 1 min under the condition of extra magnetic to form a new packing bed. The packing bed can be used for at least five times without any treatments. Additionally, since the preparation and surface functionality of magnetic nanoparticles is low-cost and reproducible, the preparation method and application approach of the magnetic nanoparticles may find much potential in proteome research. This microreactor was also successfully applied to the analysis of an RPLC fraction of the rat liver extract. After a database search, six proteins were identified. This opens a route for its further application in bottom-up proteomic analysis.

Development of an open-tubular trypsin reactor for on-line digestion of proteins

A study was initiated to construct a micro-reactor for protein digestion based on trypsin-coated fused-silica capillaries. Initially, surface plasmon resonance was used both for optimization of the surface chemistry applied in the preparation and for monitoring the amount of enzyme that was immobilized. The highest amount of trypsin was immobilized on dextran-coated SPR surfaces which allowed the covalent coupling of 11 ng mm⁻² trypsin. Fused-silica capillaries were modified in a similar manner and the resulting open-tubular trypsin-reactors having a pH optimum of pH 8.5, display a high activity when operated at 37 °C and are stable for at least two weeks when used continuously. Trypsin auto-digestion fragments, sample carry-over, and loss of signal due to adsorption of the protein were not observed. On-line digestion without prior protein denaturation, followed by micro-LC separation and photodiode array detection, was tested with horse-heart cytochrome C and horse skeletal-muscle myoglobin. The complete digestion of 20 pmol μL⁻¹ horse cytochrome C was observed when the average residence time of the protein sample in a 140 cm ×50 μm capillary immobilized enzyme reactor (IMER) was 165 s. Mass spectrometric identification of the injected protein on the basis of the tryptic peptides proved possible. Protein digestion was favorable with respect to reaction time and fragments formed when compared with other on-line and off-line procedures. These results and the easy preparation of this micro-reactor provide possibilities for miniaturized enzyme-reactors for on-line peptide mapping and inhibitor screening.

Immobilization of Trypsin on Superparamagnetic Nanoparticles for Rapid and Effective Proteolysis

In this work, a novel and facile route was developed for the immobilization of enzyme on nanosized magnetic particles, and its application to fast protein digestion via a direct MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry analysis was demonstrated. At first, amine-functionalized magnetic particles with high magnetic responsivity and excellent dispersibility were prepared through a facile one-pot strategy. Then, magnetic nanoparticles were functionalized with numerous aldehyde(-CHO) groups by treating the as-synthesized, amine-functionalized magnetic nanoparticles with glutaraldehyde. Finally, immobilization of trypsin onto the aldehyde-functionalized magnetic nanoparticles was achieved through reaction of the aldehyde groups with amine groups of trypsin. The obtained trypsin-immobilized magnetic nanoparticles were conveniently applied for protein digestion. The digestion efficiency was demonstrated with peptide mapping analysis of three model proteins. The process of digestion is very facile due to the easy manipulation of magnetic nanoparticles. Complete protein digestion was achieved in a short time (5 min), without any complicated reduction and alkylation procedures. These results are expected to open up a new possibility for the proteolysis analysis as well as a new application of magnetic nanoparticles. Additionally, it is worth noting that, since the preparation and surface functionality of magnetic nanoparticles is low-cost and reproducible, the preparation method and application approach of the magnetic nanoparticles may find much potential in proteome research.

Efficient on-chipproteolysis system based on functionalized magnetic silica microspheres

An easily replaceable enzymatic microreactor has been fabricated based on the glass microchip with trypsin-immobilized magnetic silica microspheres (MS microspheres). Magnetic microspheres with small size (approximately 300 nm in diameter) and high magnetic responsivity to magnetic field (68.2 emu/g) were synthesized and modified with tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS). Aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) and glutaraldehyde (GA) were then introduced to functionalize the MS microspheres for enzyme immobilization. Trypsin was stably immobilized onto the MS microspheres through the reaction of primary amines of the proteins with aldehyde groups on the MS microspheres. The trypsin-immobilized MS microspheres were then locally packed into the microchannel by the application of a strong field magnet to form an on-chip enzymatic microreactor. The digestion efficiency and reproducibility of the microreactor were demonstrated by using cytochrome c (Cyt-C) as a model protein. When compared with an incubation time of 12 h by free trypsin in the conventional digestion approach, proteins can be digested by the on-chip microreactor in several minutes. This microreactor was also successfully applied to the analysis of an RPLC fraction of the rat liver extract. This opens a route for its further application in top-down proteomic analysis.

Functionalized magnetic micro- and nanoparticles: Optimization and application to μ-chip tryptic digestion

The preparation of an easily replaceable protease microreactor for micro-chip application is described. Magnetic particles coated with poly(N-isopropylacrylamide), polystyrene, poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate-co-ethylene dimethacrylate), poly(glycidyl methacrylate), [(2-amino-ethyl)hydroxymethylen]biphosphonic acid, or alginic acid with immobilized trypsin were utilized for heterogeneous digestion. The properties were optimized, with the constraint of allowing immobilization in a microchannel by a magnetic field gradient. To obtain the highest digestion efficiency, sub-micrometer spheres were organized by an inhomogeneous external magnetic field perpendicularly to the direction of the channel. Kinetic parameters of the enzyme reactor immobilized in micro-chip capillary (micro-chip immobilized magnetic enzyme reactor (IMER)) were determined. The capability of the proteolytic reactor was demonstrated by five model (glyco)proteins ranging in molecular mass from 4.3 to 150 kDa. Digestion efficiency of proteins in various conformations was investigated using SDS-PAGE, HPCE, RP-HPLC, and MS. The compatibility of the micro-chip IMER system with total and limited proteolysis of high-molecular-weight (glyco)proteins was confirmed. It opens the route to automated, high-throughput proteomic micro-chip devices.

Rapid protein identification using monolithic enzymatic microreactor and LC-ESI-MS/MS

A monolithic enzymatic microreactor was prepared in a fused-silica capillary by in situ polymerization of acrylamide, glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) and ethylene dimethacrylate (EDMA) in the presence of a binary porogenic mixture of dodecanol and cyclohexanol, followed by ammonia solution treatment, glutaraldehyde activation and trypsin modification. The choice of acrylamide as co-monomer was found useful to improve the efficiency of trypsin modification, thus, to increase the enzyme activity. The optimized microreactor offered very low back pressure, enabling the fast digestion of proteins flowing through the reactor. The performance of the monolithic microreactor was demonstrated with the digestion of cytochrome c at high flow rate. The digests were then characterized by CE and HPLC-MS/MS with the sequence coverage of 57.7%. The digestion efficiency was found over 230 times as high as that of the conventional method. In addition, for the first time, protein digestion carried out in a mixture of water and ACN was compared with the conventional aqueous reaction using MS/MS detection, and the former solution was found more compatible and more efficient for protein digestion.

Rapid protein digestion and identification using monolithic enzymatic microreactor coupled with nano-liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

A novel monolithic enzymatic microreactor was prepared in the fused-silica capillary by in situ polymerization of acrylamide (AA), N-acryloxysuccinimide (NAS) and ethylene dimethacrylate (EDMA) in the presence of a binary porogenic mixture of dodecanol and cyclohexanol, which could offer very low back pressure, enabling the fast digestion of proteins. The performance of the monolithic microreactor was demonstrated by digesting cytochrome c at high flow rate, and the comparisons between the in-solution digestion and on-column reaction were made by a nano-high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (nano-HPLC-MS) system. The performance of the monolithic microreactor was demonstrated with the digestion of cytochrome c at the fast flow rate of 1 microL/min, which afforded a residence time of 7s, yielding a sequence coverage of 54.81% using strict multiple database searching thresholds. Future more, a mixture of four standard proteins was digested and analyzed using the on-line digestion and nano-HPLC-MS system. The results showed the promising of such a system in the analysis of protein mixture.

Enzymatic microreactors in chemical analysis and kinetic studies

The fields of application of microreactors are becoming wider every year. A considerable number of papers have been published recently reporting successful application of enzymatic microreactors in chemistry and biochemistry. Most are devices with enzymes immobilized on beads or walls of microfluidic channels, whilst some use dissolved enzymes to run a reaction in the microfluidic system. Apart from model systems, mostly with glucose oxidase, horseradish peroxidase and alkaline phosphatase, the principal fields of application of microreactors are tryptic digestion of proteins and polymerase chain reaction in automated analyses of proteomic and genetic material, respectively. Enzymatic microreactors also facilitate characterization of enzyme activity as a function of substrate concentration, and enable fast screening of new biocatalysts and their substrates. They may constitute key parts of lab-on-a-chip and muTAS, assisting the analysis of biomolecules. This review provides systematic coverage of examples of reports on enzymatic microreactors published recently, as well as relevant older papers.

Efficient protein digestion with peptide separation in a micro-device interfaced to electrospray mass spectrometry

A highly efficient protein digestion device has been fabricated using commercially available immobilized trypsin on agarose beads, packed into a silica capillary and connected either directly to an electrospray mass spectrometer via a 'microtight T' connector, from which aqueous acetic acid (0.2%) was pumped, or via a monolithic column connected to the mass spectrometer ion source. Six proteins with molecular mass ranging from 2848 to 77703 Da were digested completely using this system. In the second set of experiments a short monolithic separation column was placed after the immobilized trypsin capillary and partial separation of the generated peptides was obtained. The detection limits were increased from the micromol to pmol range by utilization of this separation column. Gradient elution, using a binary HPLC pump and a flow splitter, was used to optimize the peptide separation. This provided significantly enhanced resolution of the tryptic peptides but increased the analysis time to 30 minutes.

Optical resolution of various amino acids using a supported liquid membrane encapsulating a surfactant-protease complex

We have encapsulated a surfactant-protease complex (the main protease used being alpha-chymotrypsin) in an organic phase of a supported liquid membrane (SLM) for the optical resolution of various amino acids. L-Isomers of amino acids were enantioselectively permeated through the SLM. The mechanism of the amino acid permeation through the SLM was considered to be as follows; an L-amino acid was enantioselectively esterified with ethanol by a surfactant-protease complex encapsulated in the SLM, and the resulting L-amino acid ethyl ester dissolved into the organic phase of the SLM and diffused across the SLM. Another surfactant-alpha-chymotrypsin complex in the receiving phase catalyzed ester hydrolysis to produce the initial L-amino acid and ethanol, which are water-soluble. Thus, the L-amino acid was selectively transported to the receiving phase through the SLM on the basis of the molecular recognition of the surfactant-protease complex in the SLM. It was found that the catalytic activity and enantioselectivity of the surfactant-protease complex governed the permeate flux of amino acids and the enantiomeric excess in the membrane separation.

Immobilized trypsin systems coupled on-line to separation methods: Recent developments and analytical applications

The ability to rapidly and efficiently digest and identify an unknown protein is of great utility for proteome studies. Identification of proteins via peptide mapping is generally accomplished through proteolytic digestion with enzymes such as trypsin. Limitations of this approach consist in manual sample manipulation steps and extended reaction times for proteolytic digestion. The use of immobilized trypsin for cleavage of proteins is advantageous in comparison with application of its soluble form. Enzymes can be immobilized on different supports and used in flow systems such as immobilized enzyme reactors (IMERs). This review reports applications of immobilized trypsin reactors in which the IMER has been integrated into separation systems such as reversed-phase liquid chromatography or capillary electrophoresis, prior to MS analysis. Immobilization procedures including supports, mode of integration into separation systems, and methods are described.

Affinity chromatography techniques based on the immobilisation of peptides exhibiting specific binding activity

Affinity chromatography is one of the powerful techniques in selective purification and isolation of a great number of compounds. New challenges in scientific research, such as high-throughput systems, isolation procedures that allow to obtain a single substance from a complex matrix in high degree of purity, low costs and wide availability, have led to the discovery of new tailor-made synthetic recognition systems. In this review the design, synthesis, purification and characterisation of peptides with recognition properties are discussed. Applications of peptide ligands are described and analytical tools mentioned.

Utilization of newly developed immobilized enzyme reactors for preparation and study of immunoglobulin G fragments

The newly developed immobilized enzyme reactors (IMERs) with proteolytic enzymes chymotrypsin, trypsin or papain were used for specific fragmentation of high molecular-mass and heterogeneous glycoproteins immunoglobulin G (IgG) and crystallizable fragment of IgG (Fc). The efficiency of splitting or digestion were controlled by RP-HPLC. The specificity of digestion by trypsin reactor was controlled by MS. IMERs (trypsin immobilized on magnetic microparticles focused in a channel of magnetically active microfluidic device) was used for digestion of the whole IgG molecule. The sufficient conditions for IgG digestion in microfluidic device (flow rate, ratio S:E, pH, temperature) were optimized. It was confirmed that the combination of IMERs with microfluidic device enables efficient digestion of highly heterogeneous glycoproteins such as IgG in extremely short time and minimal reaction volume.

Multiplexed on-column protein digestion and capillary electrophoresis for high-throughput comprehensive peptide mapping

A novel scheme based on multiplexed capillary electrophoresis (CE) has been developed for high-throughput, low-cost and comprehensive peptide mapping. Orthogonal peptide maps of the protein of interest were obtained by using multiple reaction conditions with three different enzymes (trypsin, pepsin, and chymotrypsin), and multiple separation conditions with six zone electrophoresis buffers and two micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC) buffers. Fifteen nanoliters of two protein samples (beta-lactoglobulin A and beta-lactoglobulin B) were separately mixed on-column and digested independently at 37 degrees C for 10 min to produce peptides in a 20-capillary system. The resulting peptides were detected simultaneously at 214 nm by a photodiode array detector. The overall analysis time from reaction to detection was about 40 min.

On-line concentration of trace proteins by pH junctions in capillary electrophoresis with UV absorption detection

We report an on-line concentration approach based on pH junctions for the analysis of trace proteins under acidic conditions by capillary electrophoresis (CE) with UV absorption detection. Stacking is due to decreases in the electrophoretic mobilities of proteins when migrating from the sample zone to a relatively high-pH buffer filled in the capillary. Acidic buffers prepared from tris(hydroxymethyl)aminomethane (co-ions) and propanoic acid were suitable. With respect to speed, resolution, and stacking efficiency, it is appropriate to conduct the analysis of proteins under discontinuous conditions: pH 3.8 (inside the capillary), 2.8 (protein samples), and 3.3 (anodic reservoir). To minimize protein adsorption on the capillary wall, capillaries dynamically coated with single, double, and triple layers of polymers have been made and tested. Capillaries dynamically coated with three layers of neutral, cationic and neutral polymers in sequence were used to separate four proteins with good reproducibility. When using a 60-cm capillary, the peak height increased linearly with the injection volume up to 1.42-microl and peak profiles were sharp, indicating stacking of proteins. As a result, the limits of detection for lysozyme, myoglobin, carbonic anhydrase, and alpha-lactalbumin were 1.9, 3.2, 11.3 and 6.5 nM, respectively. Furthermore, this method has been applied to the analysis of about 1.31 and 0.66 microl of 5.00 and 0.20 microM peptic and tryptic digests of beta-casein, with results of detecting 26 and 12 peaks in 21 and 14 min, respectively.

Recent advances in capillary electrophoresis of peptides

The article gives a comprehensive review on the recent developments in the applications of high-performance capillary electromigration methods, including zone electrophoresis, isotachophoresis, isoelectric focusing, affinity electrophoresis, electrokinetic chromatography and electrochromatography, to analysis, preparation and physicochemical characterization of peptides. The article presents new approaches to the theoretical description and experimental verification of electromigration behavior of peptides, and covers the methodological aspects of capillary electroseparations of peptides, such as strategy and rules for the rational selection of separation mode and experimental conditions, sample treatment, suppression of peptide adsorption to the inner capillary wall, new developments in individual separation modes and new designs of detection systems. Several types of applications of capillary electromigration methods to peptide analysis are presented: conventional qualitative and quantitative analysis for determination of purity, determination in biomatrices, monitoring of physical and chemical changes and enzymatic conversions, amino acid and sequence analysis and peptide mapping of proteins. Some examples of micropreparative peptide separations are given and capabilities of capillary electromigration techniques to provide important physicochemical characteristics of peptides are demonstrated.