Best practices and benchmarks for intact protein analysis for top-down mass spectrometry

Exploring snake venoms beyond the primary sequence: From proteoforms to protein-protein interactions

Snakebite envenomation has been a long-standing global issue that is difficult to treat, largely owing to the flawed nature of current immunoglobulin-based antivenom therapy and the complexity of snake venoms as sophisticated mixtures of bioactive proteins and peptides. Comprehensive characterisation of venom compositions is essential to better understanding snake venom toxicity and inform effective and rationally designed antivenoms. Additionally, a greater understanding of snake venom composition will likely unearth novel biologically active proteins and peptides that have promising therapeutic or biotechnological applications. While a bottom-up proteomic workflow has been the main approach for cataloguing snake venom compositions at the toxin family level, it is unable to capture snake venom heterogeneity in the form of protein isoforms and higher-order protein interactions that are important in driving venom toxicity but remain underexplored. This review aims to highlight the importance of understanding snake venom heterogeneity beyond the primary sequence, in the form of post-translational modifications that give rise to different proteoforms and the myriad of higher-order protein complexes in snake venoms. We focus on current top-down proteomic workflows to identify snake venom proteoforms and further discuss alternative or novel separation, instrumentation, and data processing strategies that may improve proteoform identification. The current higher-order structural characterisation techniques implemented for snake venom proteins are also discussed; we emphasise the need for complementary and higher resolution structural bioanalytical techniques such as mass spectrometry-based approaches, X-ray crystallography and cryogenic electron microscopy, to elucidate poorly characterised tertiary and quaternary protein structures. We envisage that the expansion of the snake venom characterisation "toolbox" with top-down proteomics and high-resolution protein structure determination techniques will be pivotal in advancing structural understanding of snake venoms towards the development of improved therapeutic and biotechnology applications.

Comprehensive Overview of Bottom-Up Proteomics Using Mass Spectrometry

Proteomics is the large scale study of protein structure and function from biological systems through protein identification and quantification. "Shotgun proteomics" or "bottom-up proteomics" is the prevailing strategy, in which proteins are hydrolyzed into peptides that are analyzed by mass spectrometry. Proteomics studies can be applied to diverse studies ranging from simple protein identification to studies of proteoforms, protein-protein interactions, protein structural alterations, absolute and relative protein quantification, post-translational modifications, and protein stability. To enable this range of different experiments, there are diverse strategies for proteome analysis. The nuances of how proteomic workflows differ may be challenging to understand for new practitioners. Here, we provide a comprehensive overview of different proteomics methods. We cover from biochemistry basics and protein extraction to biological interpretation and orthogonal validation. We expect this Review will serve as a handbook for researchers who are new to the field of bottom-up proteomics.

Characterization of a Monoclonal Antibody by Native and Denaturing Top-Down Mass Spectrometry

Established in recent years as an important approach to unraveling the heterogeneity of intact monoclonal antibodies, native mass spectrometry has been rarely utilized for sequencing these complex biomolecules via tandem mass spectrometry. Typically, top-down mass spectrometry has been performed starting from highly charged precursor ions obtained via electrospray ionization under denaturing conditions (i.e., in the presence of organic solvents and acidic pH). Here we systematically benchmark four distinct ion dissociation methods─namely, higher-energy collisional dissociation, electron transfer dissociation, electron transfer dissociation/higher-energy collisional dissociation, and 213 nm ultraviolet photodissociation─in their capability to characterize a therapeutic monoclonal antibody, trastuzumab, starting from denatured and native-like precursor ions. Interestingly, native top-down mass spectrometry results in higher sequence coverage than the experiments carried out under denaturing conditions, with the exception of ultraviolet photodissociation. Globally, electron transfer dissociation followed by collision-based activation of product ions generates the largest number of backbone cleavages in disulfide protected regions, including the complementarity determining regions, regardless of electrospray ionization conditions. Overall, these findings suggest that native mass spectrometry can certainly be used for the gas-phase sequencing of whole monoclonal antibodies, although the dissociation of denatured precursor ions still returns a few backbone cleavages not identified in native experiments. Finally, a comparison of the fragmentation maps obtained under denaturing and native conditions strongly points toward disulfide bonds as the primary reason behind the largely overlapping dissociation patterns.

Fragment correlation mass spectrometry: Determining the structures of biopolymers in a complex mixture without isolating individual components

Fragment correlation mass spectrometry correlates ion pairs generated from the same fragmentation pathway, achieved by covariance mapping of tandem mass spectra generated with an unmodified linear ion trap without preseparation. We enable the identification of different precursors at different charge states in a complex mixture from a large isolation window, empowering an analytical approach for data-independent acquisition. The method resolves and matches isobaric fragments, internal ions, and disulfide bond fragments. We suggest that this method represents a major advance for analyzing structures of biopolymers in mixtures.

Recent Contributions of Proteomics to Our Understanding of Reversible Nε-Lysine Acylation in Bacteria

Post-translational modifications (PTMs) have been extensively studied in both eukaryotes and prokaryotes. Lysine acetylation, originally thought to be a rare occurrence in bacteria, is now recognized as a prevalent and important PTM in more than 50 species. This expansion in interest in bacterial PTMs became possible with the advancement of mass spectrometry technology and improved reagents such as acyl-modification specific antibodies. In this Review, we discuss how mass spectrometry-based proteomic studies of lysine acetylation and other acyl modifications have contributed to our understanding of bacterial physiology, focusing on recently published studies from 2018 to 2023. We begin with a discussion of approaches used to study bacterial PTMs. Next, we discuss newly characterized acylomes, including acetylomes, succinylomes, and malonylomes, in different bacterial species. In addition, we examine proteomic contributions to our understanding of bacterial virulence and biofilm formation. Finally, we discuss the contributions of mass spectrometry to our understanding of the mechanisms of acetylation, both enzymatic and nonenzymatic. We end with a discussion of the current state of the field and possible future research avenues to explore.

Immunoaffinity Intact-Mass Spectrometry for the Detection of Endogenous Concentrations of the Acetylated Protein Tumor Biomarker Neuron Specific Enolase

Intact-mass spectrometry has huge potential for clinical application, as it enables both quantitative and qualitative analysis of intact proteins and possibly unlocks additional pathophysiological information via, e.g., detection of specific post-translational modifications (PTMs). Such valuable and clinically useful selectivity is typically lost during conventional bottom-up mass spectrometry. We demonstrate an innovative immunoprecipitation protein enrichment assay coupled to ultrahigh performance liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight high resolution mass spectrometry (UPLC-QToF-HRMS) for the fast and simple identification of the protein tumor marker Neuron Specific Enolase Gamma (NSEγ) at low endogenous concentrations in human serum. Additionally, using the combination of immunoaffinity purification with intact mass spectrometry, the presence of NSEγ in an acetylated form in human serum was detected. This highlights the unique potential of immunoaffinity intact mass spectrometry in clinical diagnostics.

Minimal purification method enables developability assessment of recombinant proteins

Analytical characterization of proteins is a critical task for developing therapeutics and subunit vaccine candidates. Assessing candidates with a battery of biophysical assays can inform the selection of one that exhibits properties consistent with a given target product profile (TPP). Such assessments, however, require several milligrams of purified protein, and ideal assessments of the physicochemical attributes of the proteins should not include unnatural modifications like peptide tags for purification. Here, we describe a fast two-stage minimal purification process for recombinant proteins secreted by the yeast host Komagataella phaffii from a 20 mL culture supernatant. This method comprises a buffer exchange and filtration with a Q-membrane filter and we demonstrate sufficient removal of key supernatant impurities including host-cell proteins (HCPs) and DNA with yields of 1-2 mg and >60% purity. This degree of purity enables characterizing the resulting proteins using affinity binding, mass spectrometry, and differential scanning calorimetry. We first evaluated this method to purify an engineered SARS-CoV-2 subunit protein antigen and compared the purified protein to a conventional two-step chromatographic process. We then applied this method to compare several SARS-CoV-2 RBD sequences. Finally, we show this simple process can be applied to a range of other proteins, including a single-domain antibody, a rotavirus protein subunit, and a human growth hormone. This simple and fast developability methodology obviates the need for genetic tagging or full chromatographic development when assessing and comparing early-stage protein therapeutics and vaccine candidates produced in K. phaffii.

Protein analysis by desorption electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

This review presents progress made in the ambient analysis of proteins, in particular by desorption electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry (DESI-MS). Related ambient ionization techniques are discussed in comparison to DESI-MS only to illustrate the larger context of protein analysis by ambient ionization mass spectrometry. The review describes early and current approaches for the analysis of undigested proteins, native proteins, tryptic digests, and indirect protein determination through reporter molecules. Applications to mass spectrometry imaging for protein spatial distributions, the identification of posttranslational modifications, determination of binding stoichiometries, and enzymatic transformations are discussed. The analytical capabilities of other ambient ionization techniques such as LESA and nano-DESI currently exceed those of DESI-MS for in situ surface sampling of intact proteins from tissues. This review shows, however, that despite its many limitations, DESI-MS is making valuable contributions to protein analysis. The challenges in sensitivity, spatial resolution, and mass range are surmountable obstacles and further development and improvements to DESI-MS is justified.

Mass spectrometry-intensive top-down proteomics: an update on technology advancements and biomedical applications

Proteoforms are all forms of protein molecules from the same gene because of variations at the DNA, RNA, and protein levels, e.g., alternative splicing and post-translational modifications (PTMs). Delineation of proteins in a proteoform-specific manner is crucial for understanding their biological functions. Mass spectrometry (MS)-intensive top-down proteomics (TDP) is promising for comprehensively characterizing intact proteoforms in complex biological systems. It has achieved substantial progress in technological development, including sample preparation, proteoform separations, MS instrumentation, and bioinformatics tools. In a single TDP study, thousands of proteoforms can be identified and quantified from a cell lysate. It has also been applied to various biomedical research to better our understanding of protein function in regulating cellular processes and to discover novel proteoform biomarkers of diseases for early diagnosis and therapeutic development. This review covers the most recent technological development and biomedical applications of MS-intensive TDP.

Taylor-Aris Dispersion-Assisted Mass Spectrometry for the Analysis of Native Proteins

As has recently been shown, Taylor-Aris dispersion-assisted mass spectrometry (TADA-MS) can offer direct injection MS determinations in fields where the targets of the analyses are large molecules present in a matrix that would otherwise cause serious interferences. In the present study, we demonstrated the exceptional utility of TADA-MS in native protein analysis: (i) a dramatic improvement in detection sensitivity was found due to its ability to strongly reduce matrix interferences, (ii) more "native-like" conditions can be used during analyses, (iii) the direct injection of non-MS-compatible matrices is allowed into MS, and (iv) a considerable simplification and economization of the workflow is ensured. We investigated the behavior of different types of proteins and protein complexes present under native conditions, demonstrating the unambiguous benefits and simplicity of the method.

Rational correction of pathogenic conformational defects in HTRA1

Loss-of-function mutations in the homotrimeric serine protease HTRA1 cause cerebral vasculopathy. Here, we establish independent approaches to achieve the functional correction of trimer assembly defects. Focusing on the prototypical R274Q mutation, we identify an HTRA1 variant that promotes trimer formation thus restoring enzymatic activity in vitro. Genetic experiments in Htra1R274Q mice further demonstrate that expression of this protein-based corrector in trans is sufficient to stabilize HtrA1-R274Q and restore the proteomic signature of the brain vasculature. An alternative approach employs supramolecular chemical ligands that shift the monomer-trimer equilibrium towards proteolytically active trimers. Moreover, we identify a peptidic ligand that activates HTRA1 monomers. Our findings open perspectives for tailored protein repair strategies.

MSe Collision Energy Optimization for the Analysis of Membrane Proteins Using HDX-cIMS

Hydrogen/deuterium exchange mass spectrometry (HDX-MS) has evolved as an essential technique in structural proteomics. The use of ion mobility separation (IMS) coupled to HDX-MS has increased the applicability of the technique to more complex systems and has been shown to improve data quality and robustness. The first step when running any HDX-MS workflow is to confirm the sequence and retention time of the peptides resulting from the proteolytic digestion of the nondeuterated protein. Here, we optimized the collision energy ramp of HDMSE experiments for membrane proteins using a Waters SELECT SERIES cIMS-QTOF system following an HDX workflow using Phosphorylase B, XylE transporter, and Smoothened receptor (SMO) as model systems. Although collision energy (CE) ramp 10-50 eV gave the highest amount of positive identified peptides when using Phosphorylase B, XylE, and SMO, results suggest optimal CE ramps are protein specific, and different ramps can produce a unique set of peptides. We recommend cIMS users use different CE ramps in their HDMSE experiments and pool the results to ensure maximum peptide identifications. The results show how selecting an appropriate CE ramp can change the sequence coverage of proteins ranging from 4 to 94%.

[Applications of high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry in proteomics]

Proteomics profiling plays an important role in biomedical studies. Proteomics studies are much more complicated than genome research, mainly because of the complexity and diversity of proteomic samples. High performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS) is a fundamental tool in proteomics research owing to its high speed, resolution, and sensitivity. Proteomics research targets from the peptides and individual proteins to larger protein complexes, the molecular weight of which gradually increases, leading to sustained increases in structural and compositional complexity and alterations in molecular properties. Therefore, the selection of various separation strategies and stationary-phase parameters is crucial when dealing with the different targets in proteomics research for in-depth proteomics analysis. This article provides an overview of commonly used chromatographic-separation strategies in the laboratory, including reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC), hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC), hydrophobic interaction chromatography (HIC), ion-exchange chromatography (IEC), and size-exclusion chromatography (SEC), as well as their applications and selectivity in the context of various biomacromolecules. At present, no single chromatographic or electrophoretic technology features the peak capacity required to resolve such complex mixtures into individual components. Multidimensional liquid chromatography (MDLC), which combines different orthogonal separation modes with MS, plays an important role in proteomics research. In the MDLC strategy, IEC, together with RPLC, remains the most widely used separation mode in proteomics analysis; other chromatographic methods are also frequently used for peptide/protein fractionation. MDLC technologies and their applications in a variety of proteomics analyses have undergone great development. Two strategies in MDLC separation systems are mainly used in proteomics profiling: the "bottom-up" approach and the "top-down" approach. The "shotgun" method is a typical "bottom-up" strategy that is based on the RPLC or MDLC separation of whole-protein-sample digests coupled with MS; it is an excellent technique for identifying a large number of proteins. "Top-down" analysis is based on the separation of intact proteins and provides their detailed molecular information; thus, this technique may be advantageous for analyzing the post-translational modifications (PTMs) of proteins. In this paper, the "bottom-up" "top-down" and protein-protein interaction (PPI) analyses of proteome samples are briefly reviewed. The diverse combinations of different chromatographic modes used to set up MDLC systems are described, and compatibility issues between mobile phases and analytes, between mobile phases and MS, and between mobile phases in different separation modes in multidimensional chromatography are analyzed. Novel developments in MDLC techniques, such as high-abundance protein depletion and chromatography arrays, are further discussed. In this review, the solutions proposed by researchers when encountering compatibility issues are emphasized. Moreover, the applications of HPLC-MS combined with various sample pretreatment methods in the study of exosomal and single-cell proteomics are examined. During exosome isolation, the combined use of ultracentrifugation and SEC can yield exosomes of higher purity. The use of SEC with ultra-large-pore-size packing materials (200 nm) enables the isolation of exosomal subgroups, and proteomics studies have revealed significant differences in protein composition and function between these subgroups. In the field of single-cell proteomics, researchers have addressed challenges related to reducing sample processing volumes, preventing sample loss, and avoiding contamination during sample preparation. Innovative methods and improvements, such as the utilization of capillaries for sample processing and microchips as platforms to minimize the contact area of the droplets, have been proposed. The integration of these techniques with HPLC-MS shows some progress. In summary, this article focuses on the recent advances in HPLC-MS technology for proteomics analysis and provides a comprehensive reference for future research in the field of proteomics.

Top-down proteomics

Proteoforms, which arise from post-translational modifications, genetic polymorphisms and RNA splice variants, play a pivotal role as drivers in biology. Understanding proteoforms is essential to unravel the intricacies of biological systems and bridge the gap between genotypes and phenotypes. By analysing whole proteins without digestion, top-down proteomics (TDP) provides a holistic view of the proteome and can decipher protein function, uncover disease mechanisms and advance precision medicine. This Primer explores TDP, including the underlying principles, recent advances and an outlook on the future. The experimental section discusses instrumentation, sample preparation, intact protein separation, tandem mass spectrometry techniques and data collection. The results section looks at how to decipher raw data, visualize intact protein spectra and unravel data analysis. Additionally, proteoform identification, characterization and quantification are summarized, alongside approaches for statistical analysis. Various applications are described, including the human proteoform project and biomedical, biopharmaceutical and clinical sciences. These are complemented by discussions on measurement reproducibility, limitations and a forward-looking perspective that outlines areas where the field can advance, including potential future applications.

Characterization of Complex Proteoform Mixtures by Online Nanoflow Ion-Exchange Chromatography-Native Mass Spectrometry

The characterization of proteins and complexes in biological systems is essential to establish their critical properties and to understand their unique functions in a plethora of bioprocesses. However, it is highly difficult to analyze low levels of intact proteins in their native states (especially those exceeding 30 kDa) with liquid chromatography (LC)-mass spectrometry (MS). Herein, we describe for the first time the use of nanoflow ion-exchange chromatography directly coupled with native MS to resolve mixtures of intact proteins. Reference proteins and protein complexes with molecular weights between 10 and 150 kDa and a model cell lysate were separated using a salt-mediated pH gradient method with volatile additives. The method allowed for low detection limits (0.22 pmol of monoclonal antibodies), while proteins presented nondenatured MS (low number of charges and limited charge state distributions), and the oligomeric state of the complexes analyzed was mostly kept. Excellent chromatographic separations including the resolution of different proteoforms of large proteins (>140 kDa) and a peak capacity of 82 in a 30 min gradient were obtained. The proposed setup and workflows show great potential for analyzing diverse proteoforms in native top-down proteomics, opening unprecedented opportunities for clinical studies and other sample-limited applications.

Top-down mass spectrometry of native proteoforms and their complexes: a community study

The combination of native electrospray ionization with top-down fragmentation in mass spectrometry (MS) allows simultaneous determination of the stoichiometry of noncovalent complexes and identification of their component proteoforms and cofactors. Although this approach is powerful, both native MS and top-down MS are not yet well standardized, and only a limited number of laboratories regularly carry out this type of research. To address this challenge, the Consortium for Top-Down Proteomics initiated a study to develop and test protocols for native MS combined with top-down fragmentation of proteins and protein complexes across 11 instruments in nine laboratories. Here we report the summary of the outcomes to provide robust benchmarks and a valuable entry point for the scientific community.

TopDIA: A Software Tool for Top-Down Data-Independent Acquisition Proteomics

Top-down mass spectrometry is widely used for proteoform identification, characterization, and quantification owing to its ability to analyze intact proteoforms. In the last decade, top-down proteomics has been dominated by top-down data-dependent acquisition mass spectrometry (TD-DDA-MS), and top-down data-independent acquisition mass spectrometry (TD-DIA-MS) has not been well studied. While TD-DIA-MS produces complex multiplexed tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) spectra, which are challenging to confidently identify, it selects more precursor ions for MS/MS analysis and has the potential to increase proteoform identifications compared with TD-DDA-MS. Here we present TopDIA, the first software tool for proteoform identification by TD-DIA-MS. It generates demultiplexed pseudo MS/MS spectra from TD-DIA-MS data and then searches the pseudo MS/MS spectra against a protein sequence database for proteoform identification. We compared the performance of TD-DDA-MS and TD-DIA-MS using Escherichia coli K-12 MG1655 cells and demonstrated that TD-DIA-MS with TopDIA increased proteoform and protein identifications compared with TD-DDA-MS.

Direct Injection Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometry (ESI-MS) Analysis of Proteins with High Matrix Content:Utilizing Taylor-Aris Dispersion

This is the first work demonstrating the utility of the Taylor-Aris (TA) dispersion in avoiding serious interference issues commonly occurring in the electrospray ionization-mass spectrometric (ESI-MS) determination of therapeutic protein pharmaceuticals undergoing no pre-separation or sample purification. It was also pointed out that the TA dispersion conditions and its analytical utilization for proteomics can be easily accomplished in a commercial CE-MS instrument. In the proposed Taylor-Aris dispersion-assisted mass spectrometry (TADA-MS) analysis 0.5 μL sample is injected into a 65 cm long 50 μm i.d. capillary and pumped with 1 bar toward the MS. The procedure is efficient for the direct injection analysis of components having low diffusion coefficients (proteins) that are present in complex matrices of small organic and inorganic compounds.

Suppressing the background of LC-ESI-MS analysis of permethylated glycans using the active background ion reduction device

Mass spectrometry (MS) has revolutionized analytical chemistry, enabling precise identification and quantification of chemical species, which is pivotal for biomarker discovery and understanding complex biological systems. Despite its versatility, the presence of background ions in MS analysis hinders the sensitive detection of low-abundance analytes. Therefore, studies aimed at lowering background ion levels have become increasingly important. Here, we utilized the commercially available Active Background Ion Reduction Device (ABIRD) to suppress background ions and assess its effect on the liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization (LC-ESI)-MS analyses of N-glycans on the Q Exactive HF mass spectrometer. We also investigated the effect of different solvent vapors in the ESI source on N-glycan analysis by MS. ABIRD generally had no effect on high-mannose and neutral structures but reduced the intensity of some structures that contained sialic acid, fucose, or both when methanol vapor filled the ESI source. Based on our findings on the highest number of identified N-glycans from human serum, methanol vapor in the ion source compartment may enhance N-glycan LC-ESI-MS analyses by improving the desolvation of droplets formed during the ESI process due to its high volatility. This protocol may be further validated and extended to advanced bottom-up proteomic/glycoproteomic studies for the analysis of peptide/glycopeptide ions by MS.

Native Top-Down Mass Spectrometry for Characterizing Sarcomeric Proteins Directly from Cardiac Tissue Lysate

Native top-down mass spectrometry (nTDMS) has emerged as a powerful structural biology tool that can localize post-translational modifications (PTMs), explore ligand-binding interactions, and elucidate the three-dimensional structure of proteins and protein complexes in the gas-phase. Fourier-transform ion cyclotron resonance (FTICR) MS offers distinct capabilities for nTDMS, owing to its ultrahigh resolving power, mass accuracy, and robust fragmentation techniques. Previous nTDMS studies using FTICR have mainly been applied to overexpressed recombinant proteins and protein complexes. Here, we report the first nTDMS study that directly analyzes human heart tissue lysate by direct infusion FTICR MS without prior chromatographic separation strategies. We have achieved comprehensive nTDMS characterization of cardiac contractile proteins that play critical roles in heart contraction and relaxation. Specifically, our results reveal structural insights into ventricular myosin light chain 2 (MLC-2v), ventricular myosin light chain 1 (MLC-1v), and alpha-tropomyosin (α-Tpm) in the sarcomere, the basic contractile unit of cardiac muscle. Furthermore, we verified the calcium (Ca2+) binding domain in MLC-2v. In summary, our nTDMS platform extends the application of FTICR MS to directly characterize the structure, PTMs, and metal-binding of endogenous proteins from heart tissue lysate without prior separation methods.

An intramolecular macrocyclase in plant ribosomal peptide biosynthesis

The biosynthetic dogma of ribosomally synthesized and posttranslationally modified peptides (RiPP) involves enzymatic intermolecular modification of core peptide motifs in precursor peptides. The plant-specific BURP-domain protein family, named after their four founding members, includes autocatalytic peptide cyclases involved in the biosynthesis of side-chain-macrocyclic plant RiPPs. Here we show that AhyBURP, a representative of the founding Unknown Seed Protein-type BURP-domain subfamily, catalyzes intramolecular macrocyclizations of its core peptide during the sequential biosynthesis of monocyclic lyciumin I via glycine-tryptophan crosslinking and bicyclic legumenin via glutamine-tyrosine crosslinking. X-ray crystallography of AhyBURP reveals the BURP-domain fold with two type II copper centers derived from a conserved stapled-disulfide and His motif. We show the macrocyclization of lyciumin-C(sp3)-N-bond formation followed by legumenin-C(sp3)-O-bond formation requires dioxygen and radical involvement based on enzyme assays in anoxic conditions and isotopic labeling. Our study expands enzymatic intramolecular modifications beyond catalytic moiety and chromophore biogenesis to RiPP biosynthesis.

Mass Spectrometry Strategies for O-Glycoproteomics

Glycoproteomics has accelerated in recent decades owing to numerous innovations in the analytical workflow. In particular, new mass spectrometry strategies have contributed to inroads in O-glycoproteomics, a field that lags behind N-glycoproteomics due to several unique challenges associated with the complexity of O-glycosylation. This review will focus on progress in sample preparation, enrichment strategies, and MS/MS techniques for the identification and characterization of O-glycoproteins.

Enhancing Top-Down Analysis of Proteins by Combining Ultraviolet Photodissociation (UVPD), Proton-Transfer Charge Reduction (PTCR), and Gas-Phase Fractionation to Alleviate the Impact of Nondissociated Precursor Ions

Recent advances in top-down mass spectrometry strategies continue to improve the analysis of intact proteins. 193 nm ultraviolet photodissociation (UVPD) is one method well-suited for top-down analysis. UVPD is often performed using relatively low photon flux in order to limit multiple-generation dissociation of fragment ions and maximize sequence coverage. Consequently, a large portion of the precursor ion survives the UVPD process, dominates the spectrum, and may impede identification of fragment ions. Here, we explore the isolation of subpopulations of fragment ions lower and higher than the precursor ion after UVPD as a means to eliminate the impact of the surviving precursor ion on the detection of low abundance fragment ions. This gas-phase fractionation method improved sequence coverage harvested from fragment ions found in the m/z regions lower and higher than the precursor by an average factor of 1.3 and 2.3, respectively. Combining this gas-phase fractionation method with proton transfer charge reduction (PTCR) further increased the sequence coverage obtained from these m/z regions by another factor of 1.3 and 1.4, respectively. Implementing a post-UVPD fractionation + PTCR strategy with six fractionation events resulted in a sequence coverage of 75% for enolase, the highest reported for 193 nm UVPD.

Precursor deconvolution error estimation: The missing puzzle piece in false discovery rate in top-down proteomics

Top-down proteomics (TDP) directly analyzes intact proteins and thus provides more comprehensive qualitative and quantitative proteoform-level information than conventional bottom-up proteomics (BUP) that relies on digested peptides and protein inference. While significant advancements have been made in TDP in sample preparation, separation, instrumentation, and data analysis, reliable and reproducible data analysis still remains one of the major bottlenecks in TDP. A key step for robust data analysis is the establishment of an objective estimation of proteoform-level false discovery rate (FDR) in proteoform identification. The most widely used FDR estimation scheme is based on the target-decoy approach (TDA), which has primarily been established for BUP. We present evidence that the TDA-based FDR estimation may not work at the proteoform-level due to an overlooked factor, namely the erroneous deconvolution of precursor masses, which leads to incorrect FDR estimation. We argue that the conventional TDA-based FDR in proteoform identification is in fact protein-level FDR rather than proteoform-level FDR unless precursor deconvolution error rate is taken into account. To address this issue, we propose a formula to correct for proteoform-level FDR bias by combining TDA-based FDR and precursor deconvolution error rate.

Isotopic Depletion Increases the Spatial Resolution of FPOP Top-Down Mass Spectrometry Analysis

Protein radical labeling, like fast photochemical oxidation of proteins (FPOP), coupled to a top-down mass spectrometry (MS) analysis offers an alternative analytical method for probing protein structure or protein interaction with other biomolecules, for instance, proteins and DNA. However, with the increasing mass of studied analytes, the MS/MS spectra become complex and exhibit a low signal-to-noise ratio. Nevertheless, these difficulties may be overcome by protein isotope depletion. Thus, we aimed to use protein isotope depletion to analyze FPOP-oxidized samples by top-down MS analysis. For this purpose, we prepared isotopically natural (IN) and depleted (ID) forms of the FOXO4 DNA binding domain (FOXO4-DBD) and studied the protein-DNA interaction interface with double-stranded DNA, the insulin response element (IRE), after exposing the complex to hydroxyl radicals. As shown by comparing tandem mass spectra of natural and depleted proteins, the ID form increased the signal-to-noise ratio of useful fragment ions, thereby enhancing the sequence coverage by more than 19%. This improvement in the detection of fragment ions enabled us to detect 22 more oxidized residues in the ID samples than in the IN sample. Moreover, less common modifications were detected in the ID sample, including the formation of ketones and lysine carbonylation. Given the higher quality of ID top-down MSMS data set, these results provide more detailed information on the complex formation between transcription factors and DNA-response elements. Therefore, our study highlights the benefits of isotopic depletion for quantitative top-down proteomics. Data are available via ProteomeXchange with the identifier PXD044447.

Selenium Decipher: Trapping of Native Selenomethionine-Containing Peptides in Selenium-Enriched Milk and Unveiling the Deterioration after Ultrahigh-Temperature Treatment

Selenopeptide identification relies on databases to interpret the selenopeptide spectra. A common database search strategy is to set selenium as a variable modification instead of sulfur on peptides. However, this approach generally detects only a fraction of selenopeptides. An alternative approach, termed Selenium Decipher, is proposed in the present study. It involves identifying collision-induced dissociation-cleavable selenomethionine-containing peptides by iteratively matching the masses of seleno-amino acids in selenopeptide spectra. This approach uses variable-data-independent acquisition (vDIA) for peptide detection, providing a flexible and customizable window for secondary mass spectral fragmentation. The attention mechanism was used to capture global information on peptides and determine selenomethionine-containing peptide backbones. The core structure of selenium on selenomethionine-containing peptides generates a series of fragment ions, namely, C3H7Se+, C4H10NSe+, C5H7OSe+, C5H8NOSe+, and C7H11N2O2Se+, with known mass gaps during higher-energy collisional dissociation (HCD) fragmentation. De-selenium spectra are generated by removing selenium originating from selenium replacement and then reassigning the precursors to peptides. Selenium-enriched milk is obtained by feeding selenium-rich forage fed to cattle, which leads to the formation of native selenium through biotransformation. A novel antihypertensive selenopeptide Thr-Asp-Asp-Ile-SeMet-Cys-Val-Lys TDDI(Se)MCVK was identified from selenium-enriched milk. The selenopeptide (IC50 = 60.71 μM) is bound to four active residues of the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) active pocket (Ala354, Tyr523, His353, and His513) and two active residues of zinc ligand (His387 and Glu411) and exerted a competitive inhibitory effect on the spatial blocking of active sites. The integration of vDIA and the iteratively matched seleno-amino acids was applied for Selenium Decipher, which provides high validity for selenomethionine-containing peptide identification.

Characterizing Age-related Changes in Intact Mitochondrial Proteoforms in Murine Hearts using Quantitative Top-Down Proteomics

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the leading cause of death worldwide, and the prevalence of CVDs increases markedly with age. Due to the high energetic demand, the heart is highly sensitive to mitochondrial dysfunction. The complexity of the cardiac mitochondrial proteome hinders the development of effective strategies that target mitochondrial dysfunction in CVDs. Mammalian mitochondria are composed of over 1000 proteins, most of which can undergo post-translational protein modifications (PTMs). Top-down proteomics is a powerful technique for characterizing and quantifying all protein sequence variations and PTMs. However, there are still knowledge gaps in the study of age-related mitochondrial proteoform changes using this technique. In this study, we used top-down proteomics to identify intact mitochondrial proteoforms in young and old hearts and determined changes in protein abundance and PTMs in cardiac aging.

METHODS

Intact mitochondria were isolated from the hearts of young (4-month-old) and old (24-25-month-old) mice. The mitochondria were lysed, and mitochondrial lysates were subjected to denaturation, reduction, and alkylation. For quantitative top-down analysis, there were 12 runs in total arising from 3 biological replicates in two conditions, with technical duplicates for each sample. The collected top-down datasets were deconvoluted and quantified, and then the proteoforms were identified.

RESULTS

From a total of 12 LC-MS/MS runs, we identified 134 unique mitochondrial proteins in the different sub-mitochondrial compartments (OMM, IMS, IMM, matrix). 823 unique proteoforms in different mass ranges were identified. Compared to cardiac mitochondria of young mice, 7 proteoforms exhibited increased abundance and 13 proteoforms exhibited decreased abundance in cardiac mitochondria of old mice. Our analysis also detected PTMs of mitochondrial proteoforms, including N-terminal acetylation, lysine succinylation, lysine acetylation, oxidation, and phosphorylation.

CONCLUSION

By combining mitochondrial protein enrichment using mitochondrial fractionation with quantitative top-down analysis using ultrahigh-pressure liquid chromatography (UPLC)-MS and label-free quantitation, we successfully identified and quantified intact proteoforms in the complex mitochondrial proteome. Using this approach, we detected age-related changes in abundance and PTMs of mitochondrial proteoforms in the heart.

Collision-Induced Unfolding, Tandem MS, Bottom-up Proteomics, and Interactomics for Identification of Protein Complexes in Native Surface Mass Spectrometry

Endogenously occurring salts and nonvolatile matrix components in untreated biological surfaces can suppress protein ionization and promote adduct formation, challenging protein identification. Characterization of labile proteins within biological specimens is particularly demanding because additional purification or sample treatment steps can be time-intensive and can disrupt noncovalent interactions. It is demonstrated that the combined use of collision-induced unfolding, tandem mass spectrometry, and bottom-up proteomics improves protein characterization in native surface mass spectrometry (NSMS). This multiprong analysis is achieved by acquiring NSMS, MS/MS, ion mobility (IM), and bottom-up proteomics data from a single surface extracted sample. The validity of this multiprong approach was confirmed by the successful characterization of nine surface-deposited proteins, with molecular weights ranging from 8 to 147 kDa, in two separate mixtures. Bottom-up proteomics provided a list of proteins to match against observed proteins in NSMS and their detected subunits in tandem MS. The method was applied to characterize endogenous proteins from untreated chicken liver samples. The subcapsular liver sampling for NSMS analysis allowed for the detection of endogenous proteins with molecular weights of up to ∼220 kDa. Moreover, using IM-MS, collision cross sections and collision-induced unfolding pathways of enzymatic proteins and protein complexes of up to 145 kDa were obtained.

Evaluating protein cross-linking as a therapeutic strategy to stabilize SOD1 variants in a mouse model of familial ALS

Mutations in the gene encoding Cu-Zn superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) cause a subset of familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (fALS) cases. A shared effect of these mutations is that SOD1, which is normally a stable dimer, dissociates into toxic monomers that seed toxic aggregates. Considerable research effort has been devoted to developing compounds that stabilize the dimer of fALS SOD1 variants, but unfortunately, this has not yet resulted in a treatment. We hypothesized that cyclic thiosulfinate cross-linkers, which selectively target a rare, 2 cysteine-containing motif, can stabilize fALS-causing SOD1 variants in vivo. We created a library of chemically diverse cyclic thiosulfinates and determined structure-cross-linking-activity relationships. A pre-lead compound, "S-XL6," was selected based upon its cross-linking rate and drug-like properties. Co-crystallographic structure clearly establishes the binding of S-XL6 at Cys 111 bridging the monomers and stabilizing the SOD1 dimer. Biophysical studies reveal that the degree of stabilization afforded by S-XL6 (up to 24°C) is unprecedented for fALS, and to our knowledge, for any protein target of any kinetic stabilizer. Gene silencing and protein degrading therapeutic approaches require careful dose titration to balance the benefit of diminished fALS SOD1 expression with the toxic loss-of-enzymatic function. We show that S-XL6 does not share this liability because it rescues the activity of fALS SOD1 variants. No pharmacological agent has been proven to bind to SOD1 in vivo. Here, using a fALS mouse model, we demonstrate oral bioavailability; rapid engagement of SOD1G93A by S-XL6 that increases SOD1G93A's in vivo half-life; and that S-XL6 crosses the blood-brain barrier. S-XL6 demonstrated a degree of selectivity by avoiding off-target binding to plasma proteins. Taken together, our results indicate that cyclic thiosulfinate-mediated SOD1 stabilization should receive further attention as a potential therapeutic approach for fALS.

Liquid-chromatography mass spectrometry describes post-translational modification of Shewanella outer membrane proteins

Electrogenic bacteria deliver excess respiratory electrons to externally located metal oxide particles and electrodes. The biochemical basis for this process is arguably best understood for species of Shewanella where the integral membrane complex termed MtrCAB is key to electron transfer across the bacterial outer membranes. A crystal structure was recently resolved for MtrCAB from S. baltica OS185. However, X-ray diffraction did not resolve the N-terminal residues so that the lipidation status of proteins in the mature complex was poorly described. Here we report liquid chromatography mass spectrometry revealing the intact mass values for all three proteins in the MtrCAB complexes purified from Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 and S. baltica OS185. The masses of MtrA and MtrB are consistent with both proteins being processed by Signal Peptidase I and covalent attachment of ten c-type hemes to MtrA. The mass of MtrC is most reasonably interpreted as arising from protein processed by Signal Peptidase II to produce a diacylated lipoprotein containing ten c-type hemes. Our two-step protocol for liquid-chromatography mass spectrometry used a reverse phase column to achieve on-column detergent removal prior to gradient protein resolution and elution. We envisage the method will be capable of simultaneously resolving the intact mass values for multiple proteins in other membrane protein complexes.

Improved characterization of trastuzumab deruxtecan with PTCR and internal fragments implemented in middle-down MS workflows

Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) are highly complex proteins mainly due to the structural microvariability of the mAb, along with the additional heterogeneity afforded by the bioconjugation process. Top-down (TD) and middle-down (MD) strategies allow the straightforward fragmentation of proteins to elucidate the conjugated amino acid residues. Nevertheless, these spectra are very crowded with multiple overlapping and unassigned ion fragments. Here we report on the use of dedicated software (ClipsMS) and application of proton transfer charge reduction (PTCR), to respectively expand the fragment ion search space to internal fragments and improve the separation of overlapping fragment ions for a more comprehensive characterization of a recently approved ADC, trastuzumab deruxtecan (T-DXd). Subunit fragmentation allowed between 70 and 90% of sequence coverage to be obtained. Upon addition of internal fragment assignment, the three subunits were fully sequenced, although internal fragments did not contribute significantly to the localization of the payloads. Finally, the use of PTCR after subunit fragmentation provided a moderate sequence coverage increase between 2 and 13%. The reaction efficiently decluttered the fragmentation spectra allowing increasing the number of fragment ions characteristic of the conjugation site by 1.5- to 2.5-fold. Altogether, these results show the interest in the implementation of internal fragment ion searches and more particularly the use of PTCR reactions to increase the number of signature ions to elucidate the conjugation sites and enhance the overall sequence coverage of ADCs, making this approach particularly appealing for its implementation in R&D laboratories.

Top-Down Proteomics and the Challenges of True Proteoform Characterization

Top-down proteomics (TDP) aims to identify and profile intact protein forms (proteoforms) extracted from biological samples. True proteoform characterization requires that both the base protein sequence be defined and any mass shifts identified, ideally localizing their positions within the protein sequence. Being able to fully elucidate proteoform profiles lends insight into characterizing proteoform-unique roles, and is a crucial aspect of defining protein structure-function relationships and the specific roles of different (combinations of) protein modifications. However, defining and pinpointing protein post-translational modifications (PTMs) on intact proteins remains a challenge. Characterization of (heavily) modified proteins (>∼30 kDa) remains problematic, especially when they exist in a population of similarly modified, or kindred, proteoforms. This issue is compounded as the number of modifications increases, and thus the number of theoretical combinations. Here, we present our perspective on the challenges of analyzing kindred proteoform populations, focusing on annotation of protein modifications on an "average" protein. Furthermore, we discuss the technical requirements to obtain high quality fragmentation spectral data to robustly define site-specific PTMs, and the fact that this is tempered by the time requirements necessary to separate proteoforms in advance of mass spectrometry analysis.

Recent advances in structural mass spectrometry methods in the context of biosimilarity assessment: from sequence heterogeneities to higher order structures

Biotherapeutics and their biosimilar versions have been flourishing in the biopharmaceutical market for several years. Structural and functional characterization is needed to achieve analytical biosimilarity through the assessment of critical quality attributes as required by regulatory authorities. The role of analytical strategies, particularly mass spectrometry-based methods, is pivotal to gathering valuable information for the in-depth characterization of biotherapeutics and biosimilarity assessment. Structural mass spectrometry methods (native MS, HDX-MS, top-down MS, etc.) provide information ranging from primary sequence assessment to higher order structure evaluation. This review focuses on recent developments and applications in structural mass spectrometry for biotherapeutic and biosimilar characterization.

Advances in high-resolution mass spectrometry techniques for analysis of high mass-to-charge ions

A major challenge in modern mass spectrometry (MS) is achieving high mass resolving power and accuracy for precision analyses in high mass-to-charge (m/z) regions. To advance the capability of MS for increasingly demanding applications, understanding limitations of state-of-the-art techniques and their status in applied sciences is essential. This review summarizes important instruments in high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) and related advances to extend their working range to high m/z regions. It starts with an overview of HRMS techniques that provide adequate performance for macromolecular analysis, including Fourier-transform, time-of-flight (TOF), quadrupole-TOF, and related data-processing techniques. Methodologies and applications of HRMS for characterizing macromolecules in biochemistry and material sciences are summarized, such as top-down proteomics, native MS, drug discovery, structural virology, and polymer analyses.

Biosynthesis and engineering of the nonribosomal peptides with a C-terminal putrescine

The broad bioactivities of nonribosomal peptides rely on increasing structural diversity. Genome mining of the Burkholderiales strain Schlegelella brevitalea DSM 7029 leads to the identification of a class of dodecapeptides, glidonins, that feature diverse N-terminal modifications and a uniform putrescine moiety at the C-terminus. The N-terminal diversity originates from the wide substrate selectivity of the initiation module. The C-terminal putrescine moiety is introduced by the unusual termination module 13, the condensation domain directly catalyzes the assembly of putrescine into the peptidyl backbone, and other domains are essential for stabilizing the protein structure. Swapping of this module to another two nonribosomal peptide synthetases leads to the addition of a putrescine to the C-terminus of related nonribosomal peptides, improving their hydrophilicity and bioactivity. This study elucidates the mechanism for putrescine addition and provides further insights to generate diverse and improved nonribosomal peptides by introducing a C-terminal putrescine.

Recent methodological advances towards single-cell proteomics

Studying the central dogma at the single-cell level has gained increasing attention to reveal hidden cell lineages and functions that cannot be studied using traditional bulk analyses. Nonetheless, most single-cell studies exploiting genomic and transcriptomic levels fail to address information on proteins that are central to many important biological processes. Single-cell proteomics enables understanding of the functional status of individual cells and is particularly crucial when the specimen is composed of heterogeneous entities of cells. With the growing importance of this field, significant methodological advancements have emerged recently. These include miniaturized and automated sample preparation, multi-omics analyses, and combined analyses of multiple techniques such as mass spectrometry and microscopy. Moreover, artificial intelligence and single-molecule detection technologies have advanced throughput and improved sensitivity limitations, respectively, over conventional methods. In this review, we summarize cutting-edge methodologies for single-cell proteomics and relevant emerging technologies that have been reported in the last 5 years, and provide an outlook on this research field.

Recent applications of quantitative mass spectrometry in biopharmaceutical process development and manufacturing

Biopharmaceutical products have seen rapid growth over the past few decades and continue to dominate the global pharmaceutical market. Aligning with the quality by design (QbD) framework and realization, recent advances in liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) instrumentation and related techniques have enhanced biopharmaceutical characterization capabilities and have supported an increased development of biopharmaceutical products. Beyond its routine qualitative characterization, the quantitative feature of LC-MS has unique applications in biopharmaceutical process development and manufacturing. This review describes the recent applications and implications of the advancement of quantitative MS methods in biopharmaceutical process development, and characterization of biopharmaceutical product, product-related variants, and process-related impurities. We also provide insights on the emerging applications of quantitative MS in the lifecycle of biopharmaceutical product development including quality control in the Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) environment and process analytical technology (PAT) practices during process development and manufacturing. Through collaboration with instrument and software vendors and regulatory agencies, we envision broader adoption of phase-appropriate quantitative MS-based methods for the analysis of biopharmaceutical products, which in turn has the potential to enable manufacture of higher quality products for patients.

Study of β1-transferrin and β2-transferrin using microprobe-capture in-emitter elution and high-resolution mass spectrometry

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leak can be diagnosed in clinical laboratories by detecting a diagnostic marker β2-transferrin (β2-Tf) in secretion samples. β2-Tf and the typical transferrin (Tf) proteoform in serum, β1-transferrin (β1-Tf), are Tf glycoforms. An innovative affinity capture technique for sample preparation, called microprobe-capture in-emitter elution (MPIE), was incorporated with high-resolution mass spectrometry (HR-MS) to study the Tf glycoforms and the primary structures of β1-Tf and β2-Tf. To implement MPIE, an analyte is first captured on the surface of a microprobe, and subsequently eluted from the microprobe inside an electrospray emitter. The capture process is monitored in real-time via next-generation biolayer interferometry (BLI). When electrospray is established from the emitter to a mass spectrometer, the analyte is immediately ionized via electrospray ionization (ESI) for HR-MS analysis. Serum, CSF, and secretion samples were analyzed using MPIE-ESI-MS. Based on the MPIE-ESI-MS results, the primary structures of β1-Tf and β2-Tf were elucidated. As Tf glycoforms, β1-Tf and β2-Tf share the amino acid sequence but contain varying N-glycans: (1) β1-Tf, the major serum-type Tf, has two G2S2 N-glycans on Asn413 and Asn611; and (2) β2-Tf, the major brain-type Tf, has an M5 N-glycan on Asn413 and a G0FB N-glycan on Asn611. The resolving power of the innovative MPIE-ESI-MS method was demonstrated in the study of β2-Tf as well as β1-Tf. Knowing the N-glycan structures on β2-Tf allows for the design of more novel test methods for β2-Tf in the future.

Protein LC-MS Tools for the Next Generation of Biotherapeutic Analyses from Preclinical and Clinical Serum

LC-MS analysis of therapeutic antibodies and other biotherapeutics from in-life studies (e.g., serum/plasma) has evolved from simple peptide digestion to peptide mapping and intact mass monitoring. From more advanced analytical approaches, a deeper understanding as to the fate of the biotherapeutic in vivo is gained. Here, we examine the next generation of approaches to facilitate the most comprehensive understanding of large molecule drug fate in circulation. Three case studies are presented: (1) use of relative and absolute calibration curves for biotherapeutic quantitation from the same sample set; (2) top-down mass spectrometry applied to bioanalytical assays; (3) biotherapeutic protein complexes from serum analyzed by native protein MS. We anticipate that these approaches will be further adapted and applied by other research groups.

Illuminating the oral microbiome and its host interactions: recent advancements in omics and bioinformatics technologies in the context of oral microbiome research

The oral microbiota has an enormous impact on human health, with oral dysbiosis now linked to many oral and systemic diseases. Recent advancements in sequencing, mass spectrometry, bioinformatics, computational biology, and machine learning are revolutionizing oral microbiome research, enabling analysis at an unprecedented scale and level of resolution using omics approaches. This review contains a comprehensive perspective of the current state-of-the-art tools available to perform genomics, metagenomics, phylogenomics, pangenomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, lipidomics, and multi-omics analysis on (all) microbiomes, and then provides examples of how the techniques have been applied to research of the oral microbiome, specifically. Key findings of these studies and remaining challenges for the field are highlighted. Although the methods discussed here are placed in the context of their contributions to oral microbiome research specifically, they are pertinent to the study of any microbiome, and the intended audience of this includes researchers would simply like to get an introduction to microbial omics and/or an update on the latest omics methods. Continued research of the oral microbiota using omics approaches is crucial and will lead to dramatic improvements in human health, longevity, and quality of life.

Capillary Zone Electrophoresis-Tandem Mass Spectrometry for Top-Down Proteomics of Mouse Brain Integral Membrane Proteins

Mass spectrometry (MS)-based top-down characterization of integral membrane proteins (IMPs) is crucial for understanding their functions in biological processes. However, it is technically challenging due to their low solubility in typical MS-compatible buffers. In this work, for the first time, we developed an efficient capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE)-tandem MS (MS/MS) method for the top-down proteomics (TDP) of IMPs enriched from mouse brains. Our technique employs a sample buffer containing 30% (v/v) formic acid and 60% (v/v) methanol for solubilizing IMPs and utilizes a separation buffer of 30% (v/v) acetic acid and 30% (v/v) methanol for maintaining the solubility of IMPs during CZE separation. Single-shot CZE-MS/MS identified 51 IMP proteoforms from the mouse brain sample. Coupling size exclusion chromatography (SEC) to CZE-MS/MS enabled the identification of 276 IMP proteoforms from the mouse brain sample containing 1-4 transmembrane domains. This proof-of-concept work demonstrates the high potential of CZE-MS/MS for the large-scale TDP of IMPs.

Top-down mass spectrometry of native proteoforms and their complexes: A community study

The combination of native electrospray ionisation with top-down fragmentation in mass spectrometry allows simultaneous determination of the stoichiometry of noncovalent complexes and identification of their component proteoforms and co-factors. While this approach is powerful, both native mass spectrometry and top-down mass spectrometry are not yet well standardised, and only a limited number of laboratories regularly carry out this type of research. To address this challenge, the Consortium for Top-Down Proteomics (CTDP) initiated a study to develop and test protocols for native mass spectrometry combined with top-down fragmentation of proteins and protein complexes across eleven instruments in nine laboratories. The outcomes are summarised in this report to provide robust benchmarks and a valuable entry point for the scientific community.

Identification of Splice Variants and Isoforms in Transcriptomics and Proteomics

Alternative splicing is pivotal to the regulation of gene expression and protein diversity in eukaryotic cells. The detection of alternative splicing events requires specific omics technologies. Although short-read RNA sequencing has successfully supported a plethora of investigations on alternative splicing, the emerging technologies of long-read RNA sequencing and top-down mass spectrometry open new opportunities to identify alternative splicing and protein isoforms with less ambiguity. Here, we summarize improvements in short-read RNA sequencing for alternative splicing analysis, including percent splicing index estimation and differential analysis. We also review the computational methods used in top-down proteomics analysis regarding proteoform identification, including the construction of databases of protein isoforms and statistical analyses of search results. While many improvements in sequencing and computational methods will result from emerging technologies, there should be future endeavors to increase the effectiveness, integration, and proteome coverage of alternative splicing events.

A critical evaluation of protein kinase regulation by activation loop autophosphorylation

Phosphorylation of proteins is a ubiquitous mechanism of regulating their function, localization, or activity. Protein kinases, enzymes that use ATP to phosphorylate protein substrates are, therefore, powerful signal transducers in eukaryotic cells. The mechanism of phosphoryl-transfer is universally conserved among protein kinases, which necessitates the tight regulation of kinase activity for the orchestration of cellular processes with high spatial and temporal fidelity. In response to a stimulus, many kinases enhance their own activity by autophosphorylating a conserved amino acid in their activation loop, but precisely how this reaction is performed is controversial. Classically, kinases that autophosphorylate their activation loop are thought to perform the reaction in trans, mediated by transient dimerization of their kinase domains. However, motivated by the recently discovered regulation mechanism of activation loop cis-autophosphorylation by a kinase that is autoinhibited in trans, we here review the various mechanisms of autoregulation that have been proposed. We provide a framework for critically evaluating biochemical, kinetic, and structural evidence for protein kinase dimerization and autophosphorylation, and share some thoughts on the implications of these mechanisms within physiological signaling networks.

Deep Bottom-up Proteomics Enabled by the Integration of Liquid-Phase Ion Trap

In bottom-up proteomics, the complexity of the proteome requires advanced peptide separation and/or fractionation methods to acquire an in-depth understanding of protein profiles. Proposed earlier as a solution-phase ion manipulation device, liquid phase ion traps (LPITs) were used in front of mass spectrometers to accumulate target ions for improved detection sensitivity. In this work, an LPIT-reversed phase liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LPIT-RPLC-MS/MS) platform was established for deep bottom-up proteomics. LPIT was used here as a robust and effective method for peptide fractionation, which also shows good reproducibility and sensitivity on both qualitative and quantitative levels. LPIT separates peptides based on their effective charges and hydrodynamic radii, which is orthogonal to that of RPLC. With excellent orthogonality, the integration of LPIT with RPLC-MS/MS could effectively increase the number of peptides and proteins being detected. When HeLa cells were analyzed, peptide and protein coverages were increased by ∼89.2% and 50.3%, respectively. With high efficiency and low cost, this LPIT-based peptide fraction method could potentially be used in routine deep bottom-up proteomics.

Coupling High-Field Asymmetric Waveform Ion Mobility Spectrometry with Capillary Zone Electrophoresis-Tandem Mass Spectrometry for Top-Down Proteomics

Capillary zone electrophoresis-tandem mass spectrometry (CZE-MS/MS) has emerged as an essential technique for top-down proteomics (TDP), providing superior separation efficiency and high detection sensitivity for proteoform analysis. Here, we aimed to further enhance the performance of CZE-MS/MS for TDP via coupling online gas-phase proteoform fractionation using high-field asymmetric waveform ion mobility spectrometry (FAIMS). When the compensation voltage (CV) of FAIMS was changed from -50 to 30 V, the median mass of identified proteoforms increased from less than 10 kDa to about 30 kDa, suggesting that FAIMS can efficiently fractionate proteoforms by their size. CZE-FAIMS-MS/MS boosted the number of proteoform identifications from a yeast sample by nearly 3-fold relative to CZE-MS/MS alone. It particularly benefited the identification of relatively large proteoforms, improving the number of proteoforms in a mass range of 20-45 kDa by 6-fold compared to CZE-MS/MS alone. FAIMS fractionation gained nearly 20-fold better signal-to-noise ratios of randomly selected proteoforms than no FAIMS. We expect that CZE-FAIMS-MS/MS will be a useful tool for further advancing the sensitivity and coverage of TDP. This work shows the first example of coupling CE with ion mobility spectrometry (IMS) for TDP.

Orchestration of Mitochondrial Function and Remodeling by Post-Translational Modifications Provide Insight into Mechanisms of Viral Infection

The regulation of mitochondria structure and function is at the core of numerous viral infections. Acting in support of the host or of virus replication, mitochondria regulation facilitates control of energy metabolism, apoptosis, and immune signaling. Accumulating studies have pointed to post-translational modification (PTM) of mitochondrial proteins as a critical component of such regulatory mechanisms. Mitochondrial PTMs have been implicated in the pathology of several diseases and emerging evidence is starting to highlight essential roles in the context of viral infections. Here, we provide an overview of the growing arsenal of PTMs decorating mitochondrial proteins and their possible contribution to the infection-induced modulation of bioenergetics, apoptosis, and immune responses. We further consider links between PTM changes and mitochondrial structure remodeling, as well as the enzymatic and non-enzymatic mechanisms underlying mitochondrial PTM regulation. Finally, we highlight some of the methods, including mass spectrometry-based analyses, available for the identification, prioritization, and mechanistic interrogation of PTMs.

Screening Clones for Monoclonal Antibody Production Using Droplet Microfluidics Interfaced to Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometry

As one of the most critical steps in process development for protein therapeutics, clone selection and cell culture optimization require a large number of samples to be screened for high titer and desirable molecular profiles. Typical analytical techniques, such as chromatographic approaches, often take minutes per sample which are inefficient for large-scale screenings. Droplet microfluidics coupled to mass spectrometry (MS) represents an attractive approach due to its low volume requirements, high-throughput capabilities, label-free nature, and ability to handle complex mixtures. In this work, we coupled a modified protein cleanup protocol with a droplet-MS workflow for mAb titer screening to guide clone selection. With this droplet approach we achieved a throughput of 0.04 samples/s with an LoD of 0.15 mg/mL and an LoQ of 0.45 mg/mL. To test its performance in a real-world setting, this workflow was applied to a 35-clone screen, where the top 20% producing clones were identified. In addition, we coupled our sample cleanup protocol to a high-resolution MS and compared the glycan profiles of the high titer clones. This work demonstrates that droplet-MS provides a rapid way of clone screening and cell culture optimization based on titer and molecular structure of the expressed proteins. Future work is aimed at increasing the throughput and automation of this droplet-MS technique.

"Lab of the Future"─Today: Fully Automated System for High-Throughput Mass Spectrometry Analysis of Biotherapeutics

Here we describe a state-of-the-art, integrated, multi-instrument automated system designed to execute methods involved in mass spectrometry characterization of biotherapeutics. The system includes liquid and microplate handling robotics and utilities, integrated LC-MS, along with data analysis software, to perform sample purification, preparation, and analysis as a seamless integrated unit. The automated process begins with tip-based purification of target proteins from expression cell-line supernatants, which is initiated once the samples are loaded onto the automated system and the metadata are retrieved from our corporate data aggregation system. Subsequently, the purified protein samples are prepared for MS, including deglycosylation and reduction steps for intact and reduced mass analysis, and proteolytic digestions, desalting, and buffer exchange via centrifugation for peptide map analysis. The prepared samples are then loaded into the LC-MS instrumentation for data acquisition. The acquired raw data are initially stored on a local area network storage system that is monitored by watcher scripts that then upload the raw MS data to a network of cloud-based servers. The raw MS data are processed with the appropriately configured analysis workflows such as database search for peptide mapping or charge deconvolution for undigested proteins. The results are verified and formatted for expert curation directly in the cloud. Finally, the curated results are appended to sample metadata in the corporate data aggregation system to accompany the biotherapeutic cell lines in subsequent processes.