High-Throughput Nanoflow Proteomics Using a Dual-Column Electrospray Source.

With current trends in proteomics, especially regarding clinical and low input (to single cell) samples, it is increasingly important to both maximize the throughput of the analysis and maintain as much sensitivity as possible. The new generation of mass spectrometers (MS) are taking a huge leap in sensitivity, allowing analysis of samples with shorter liquid chromatography (LC) methods while digging as deep in the proteome. However, the throughput can be doubled by implementing a dual column nano-LC-MS configuration. For this purpose, we used a dual-column setup with a two-outlet electrospray source and compared it to a classic dual-column setup with a single-outlet source.

Proteomic data and structure analysis combined reveal interplay of structural rigidity and flexibility on selectivity of cysteine cathepsins.

Addressing the elusive specificity of cysteine cathepsins, which in contrast to caspases and trypsin-like proteases lack strict specificity determining P1 pocket, calls for innovative approaches. Proteomic analysis of cell lysates with human cathepsins K, V, B, L, S, and F identified 30,000 cleavage sites, which we analyzed by software platform SAPS-ESI (Statistical Approach to Peptidyl Substrate-Enzyme Specific Interactions). SAPS-ESI is used to generate clusters and training sets for support vector machine learning. Cleavage site predictions on the SARS-CoV-2 S protein, confirmed experimentally, expose the most probable first cut under physiological conditions and suggested furin-like behavior of cathepsins. Crystal structure analysis of representative peptides in complex with cathepsin V reveals rigid and flexible sites consistent with analysis of proteomics data by SAPS-ESI that correspond to positions with heterogeneous and homogeneous distribution of residues. Thereby support for design of selective cleavable linkers of drug conjugates and drug discovery studies is provided.

Immunopeptidomics-based design of mRNA vaccine formulations against Listeria monocytogenes.

Listeria monocytogenes is a foodborne intracellular bacterial pathogen leading to human listeriosis. Despite a high mortality rate and increasing antibiotic resistance no clinically approved vaccine against Listeria is available. Attenuated Listeria strains offer protection and are tested as antitumor vaccine vectors, but would benefit from a better knowledge on immunodominant vector antigens. To identify novel antigens, we screen for Listeria peptides presented on the surface of infected human cell lines by mass spectrometry-based immunopeptidomics. In between more than 15,000 human self-peptides, we detect 68 Listeria immunopeptides from 42 different bacterial proteins, including several known antigens. Peptides presented on different cell lines are often derived from the same bacterial surface proteins, classifying these antigens as potential vaccine candidates. Encoding these highly presented antigens in lipid nanoparticle mRNA vaccine formulations results in specific CD8+ T-cell responses and induces protection in vaccination challenge experiments in mice. Our results can serve as a starting point for the development of a clinical mRNA vaccine against Listeria and aid to improve attenuated Listeria vaccines and vectors, demonstrating the power of immunopeptidomics for next-generation bacterial vaccine development.

Limited Evidence for Protein Products of Noncoding Transcripts in the HEK293T Cellular Cytosol.

Ribosome profiling has revealed translation outside canonical coding sequences, including translation of short upstream ORFs, long noncoding RNAs, overlapping ORFs, ORFs in UTRs, or ORFs in alternative reading frames. Studies combining mass spectrometry, ribosome profiling, and CRISPR-based screens showed that hundreds of ORFs derived from noncoding transcripts produce (micro)proteins, whereas other studies failed to find evidence for such types of noncanonical translation products. Here, we attempted to discover translation products from noncoding regions by strongly reducing the complexity of the sample prior to mass spectrometric analysis. We used an extended database as the search space and applied stringent filtering of the identified peptides to find evidence for novel translation events. We show that, theoretically our strategy facilitates the detection of translation events of transcripts from noncoding regions but experimentally only find 19 peptides that might originate from such translation events. Finally, Virotrap-based interactome analysis of two N-terminal proteoforms originating from noncoding regions showed the functional potential of these novel proteins.

Waveguide-based surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy detection of protease activity using non-natural aromatic amino acids.

Surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is a selective and sensitive technique, which allows for the detection of protease activity by monitoring the cleavage of peptide substrates. Commonly used free-space based SERS substrates, however, require the use of bulky and expensive instrumentation, limiting their use to laboratory environments. An integrated photonics approach aims to implement various free-space optical components to a reliable, mass-reproducible and cheap photonic chip. We here demonstrate integrated SERS detection of trypsin activity using a nanoplasmonic slot waveguide as a waveguide-based SERS substrate. Despite the continuously improving SERS performance of the waveguide-based SERS substrates, they currently still do not reach the SERS enhancements of free-space substrates. To mitigate this, we developed an improved peptide substrate in which we incorporated the non-natural aromatic amino acid 4-cyano-phenylalanine, which provides a high intrinsic SERS signal. The use of non-natural aromatics is expected to extend the possibilities for multiplexing measurements, where the activity of several proteases can be detected simultaneously.

Comparison of Free-Space and Waveguide-Based SERS Platforms.

Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) allows for the highly specific detection of molecules by enhancing the inherently weak Raman signals near the surface of plasmonic nanostructures. A variety of plasmonic nanostructures have been developed for SERS signal excitation and collection in a conventional free-space microscope, among which the gold nanodomes offer one of the highest SERS enhancements. Nanophotonic waveguides have recently emerged as an alternative to the conventional Raman microscope as they can be used to efficiently excite and collect Raman signals. Integration of plasmonic structures on nanophotonic waveguides enables reproducible waveguide-based excitation and collection of SERS spectra, such as in nanoplasmonic slot waveguides. In this paper, we compare the SERS performance of gold nanodomes, in which the signal is excited and collected in free space, and waveguide-based nanoplasmonic slot waveguide. We evaluate the SERS signal enhancement and the SERS background of the different SERS platforms using a monolayer of nitrothiophenol. We show that the nanoplasmonic slot waveguide approaches the gold nanodomes in terms of the signal-to-background ratio. We additionally demonstrate the first-time detection of a peptide monolayer on a waveguide-based SERS platform, paving the way towards the SERS monitoring of biologically relevant molecules on an integrated lab-on-a-chip platform.

Gold nanodome SERS platform for label-free detection of protease activity.

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering provides a promising technology for sensitive and selective detection of protease activity by monitoring peptide cleavage. Not only are peptides and plasmonic hotspots similarly sized, Raman fingerprints also hold large potential for spectral multiplexing. Here, we use a gold-nanodome platform for real-time detection of trypsin activity on a CALNNYGGGGVRGNF substrate peptide. First, we investigate the spectral changes upon cleavage through the SERS signal of liquid-chromatography separated products. Next, we show that similar patterns are detected upon digesting surface-bound peptides. We demonstrate that the relative intensity of the fingerprints from aromatic amino acids before and after the cleavage site provides a robust figure of merit for the turnover rate. The presented method offers a generic approach for measuring protease activity, which is illustrated by developing an analogous substrate for endoproteinase Glu-C.

CEP5 and XIP1/CEPR1 regulate lateral root initiation in Arabidopsis.

Roots explore the soil for water and nutrients through the continuous production of lateral roots. Lateral roots are formed at regular distances in a steadily elongating organ, but how future sites for lateral root formation become established is not yet understood. Here, we identified C-TERMINALLY ENCODED PEPTIDE 5 (CEP5) as a novel, auxin-repressed and phloem pole-expressed signal assisting in the formation of lateral roots. In addition, based on genetic and expression data, we found evidence for the involvement of its proposed receptor, XYLEM INTERMIXED WITH PHLOEM 1 (XIP1)/CEP RECEPTOR 1 (CEPR1), during the process of lateral root initiation. In conclusion, we report here on the existence of a peptide ligand-receptor kinase interaction that impacts lateral root initiation. Our results represent an important step towards the understanding of the cellular communication implicated in the early phases of lateral root formation.

Protein Methionine Sulfoxide Dynamics in Arabidopsis thaliana under Oxidative Stress.

Reactive oxygen species such as hydrogen peroxide can modify proteins via direct oxidation of their sulfur-containing amino acids, cysteine and methionine. Methionine oxidation, studied here, is a reversible posttranslational modification that is emerging as a mechanism by which proteins perceive oxidative stress and function in redox signaling. Identification of proteins with oxidized methionines is the first prerequisite toward understanding the functional effect of methionine oxidation on proteins and the biological processes in which they are involved. Here, we describe a proteome-wide study of in vivo protein-bound methionine oxidation in plants upon oxidative stress using Arabidopsis thaliana catalase 2 knock-out plants as a model system. We identified over 500 sites of oxidation in about 400 proteins and quantified the differences in oxidation between wild-type and catalase 2 knock-out plants. We show that the activity of two plant-specific glutathione S-transferases, GSTF9 and GSTT23, is significantly reduced upon oxidation. And, by sampling over time, we mapped the dynamics of methionine oxidation and gained new insights into this complex and dynamic landscape of a part of the plant proteome that is sculpted by oxidative stress.

C-terminomics screen for natural substrates of cytosolic carboxypeptidase 1 reveals processing of acidic protein C termini.

Cytosolic carboxypeptidases (CCPs) constitute a new subfamily of M14 metallocarboxypeptidases associated to axonal regeneration and neuronal degeneration, among others. CCPs are deglutamylating enzymes, able to catalyze the shortening of polyglutamate side-chains and the gene-encoded C termini of tubulin, telokin, and myosin light chain kinase. The functions of these enzymes are not entirely understood, in part because of the lack of information about C-terminal protein processing in the cell and its functional implications. By means of C-terminal COFRADIC, a positional proteomics approach, we searched for cellular substrates targets of CCP1, the most relevant member of this family. We here identified seven new putative CCP1 protein substrates, including ribosomal proteins, translation factors, and high mobility group proteins. Furthermore, we showed for the first time that CCP1 processes both glutamates as well as C-terminal aspartates. The implication of these C termini in molecular interactions furthermore suggests that CCP1-mediated shortening of acidic protein tails might regulate protein-protein and protein-DNA interactions.

Substrate specificities of the granzyme tryptases A and K.

The physiological roles of the granzymes A and K have been debated, especially concerning their involvement in cytotoxic and inflammatory processes. By performing N-terminal COFRADIC assisted N-terminomics on the homologous human granzymes A and K, we here provide detailed data on their substrate repertoires, their specificities, and differences in efficiency by which they cleave their substrates, all of which may aid in elucidating their key substrates. In addition, the so far uncharacterized mouse granzyme K was profiled alongside its human orthologue. While the global primary specificity profiles of these granzymes appear quite similar as they revealed only subtle differences and pointed to substrate occupancies in the P1, P1', and P2' position as the main determinants for substrate recognition, differential analyses unveiled distinguishing substrate subsite features, some of which were confirmed by the more selective cleavage of specifically designed probes.

Asn3, a reliable, robust, and universal lock mass for improved accuracy in LC-MS and LC-MS/MS.

The use of internal calibrants (the so-called lock mass approach) provides much greater accuracy in mass spectrometry based proteomics. However, the polydimethylcyclosiloxane (PCM) peaks commonly used for this purpose are quite unreliable, leading to missing calibrant peaks in spectra and correspondingly lower mass measurement accuracy. Therefore, we here introduce a universally applicable and robust internal calibrant, the tripeptide Asn3. We show that Asn3 is a substantial improvement over PCM both in terms of consistent detection and resulting mass measurement accuracy. Asn3 is also very easy to adopt in the lab, as it requires only minor adjustments to the analytical setup.

Selecting protein N-terminal peptides by combined fractional diagonal chromatography.

In recent years, procedures for selecting the N-terminal peptides of proteins with analysis by mass spectrometry have been established to characterize protease-mediated cleavage and protein α-N-acetylation on a proteomic level. As a pioneering technology, N-terminal combined fractional diagonal chromatography (COFRADIC) has been used in numerous studies in which these protein modifications were investigated. Derivatization of primary amines--which can include stable isotope labeling--occurs before trypsin digestion so that cleavage occurs after arginine residues. Strong cation exchange (SCX) chromatography results in the removal of most of the internal peptides. Diagonal, reversed-phase peptide chromatography, in which the two runs are separated by reaction with 2,4,6-trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid, results in the removal of the C-terminal peptides and remaining internal peptides and the fractionation of the sample. We describe here the fully matured N-terminal COFRADIC protocol as it is currently routinely used, including the most substantial improvements (including treatment with glutamine cyclotransferase and pyroglutamyl aminopeptidase to remove pyroglutamate before SCX, and a sample pooling scheme to reduce the overall number of liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry analyses) that were made since its original publication. Completion of the N-terminal COFRADIC procedure takes ~5 d.

A review of COFRADIC techniques targeting protein N-terminal acetylation.

Acetylation of nascent protein Nalpha-termini is a common modification among archae and eukaryotes and can influence the structure and function of target proteins. This modification has been studied on an individual protein or (synthetic) peptide level or on a proteome scale using two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. We recently developed mass spectrometry driven proteome analytical approaches specifically targeting the amino (N) terminus of proteins based on the concept of diagonal reverse-phase chromatography. We here review how this so-called combined fractional diagonal chromatography (COFRADIC) technique can be used in combination with differential mass-tagging strategies as to both qualitatively and quantitatively assess protein Nalpha-acetylation in whole proteomes.

The actin propulsive machinery: the proteome of Listeria monocytogenes tails.

Actin-based comet tails produced by Listeria monocytogenes are considered as representative models for cellular force-producing machineries crucial for cell migration. We here present a proteomic picture of these tails formed in extracts from brain and platelets. This provides a comprehensive view, revealing high molecular complexity and novel host cell proteins as tail components, and suggests the participation of specific multicomponent regulatory complexes. This work forms a new basis to expand current models of cellular protrusion.

Improved recovery of proteome-informative, protein N-terminal peptides by combined fractional diagonal chromatography (COFRADIC).

We previously described a proteome-wide, peptide-centric procedure for sorting protein N-terminal peptides and used these peptides as readouts for protease degradome and xenoproteome studies. This procedure is part of a repertoire of gel-free techniques known as COmbined FRActional DIagonal Chromatography (COFRADIC) and highly enriches for alpha-amino-blocked peptides, including alpha-amino-acetylated protein N-terminal peptides. Here, we introduce two additional steps that significantly increase the fraction of such proteome-informative, N-terminal peptides: strong cation exchange (SCX) segregation of alpha-amino-blocked and alpha-amino-free peptides and an enzymatic step liberating pyroglutamyl peptides for 2,4,6-trinitrobenzenesulphonic acid (TNBS) modification and thus COFRADIC sorting. The SCX step reduces the complexity of the analyte mixture by enriching N-terminal peptides and depleting alpha-amino-free internal peptides as well as proline-starting peptides prior to COFRADIC. The action of pyroglutamyl aminopeptidases prior to the first COFRADIC peptide separation results in greatly diminishing numbers of contaminating pyroglutamyl peptides in peptide maps. We further show that now close to 95% of all COFRADIC-sorted peptides are alpha-amino-acetylated and, using the same amount of starting material, our novel procedure leads to an increased number of protein identifications.

A new approach for mapping sialylated N-glycosites in serum proteomes.

A new approach for proteome-wide analysis of sialylated N-glycopeptides based on the diagonal chromatographic COFRADIC technology is presented here. The use of alpha(2-3,6,8,9) neuraminidase is central to isolate sialylated N-glycopeptides out of a complex peptide mixture. Two different COFRADIC techniques are introduced here, either without or with post-metabolic oxygen-18 labeling (direct versus indirect sorting), and when applied to immuno-depleted mouse serum, we herewith identified 93 sialylated glycosylation sites in 53 serum proteins.

Four stage liquid chromatographic selection of methionyl peptides for peptide-centric proteome analysis: the proteome of human multipotent adult progenitor cells.

Serial application of strong cation-exchange and diagonal reversed-phase chromatography selecting methionyl peptides by stepwise shifting them from their reduced to their sulfoxide and sulfone forms generates a four-stage fractionation system, allowing high coverage analysis of complex proteome digests by LC-MALDI-MS/MS. Application to the proteome of a human multipotent adult progenitor cell line (MAPC) identified 2151 proteins with high confidence as on average four MS/MS-spectra were linked to each protein. Our dataset contains several novel, potential marker proteins that may be evaluated as affinity-anchors for isolating different adult stem cells in further studies. Furthermore, at least 2 tyrosine kinases that were previously linked to the self-renewal potential of stem cells were identified, validating the stemness of the analyzed cells. We also present data hinting at possible involvement of the ubiquitin/proteasome machinery in steering proliferation and/or differentiation of MAPC. Finally, following comparison of the MAPC proteome with proteomes of four human differentiated cell lines reveals differential usage of chromosomal information: compared to differentiated cells, MAPC do not appear to hold any preference for expressing genes located on specific chromosomes.

Global phosphoproteome analysis on human HepG2 hepatocytes using reversed-phase diagonal LC.

We present a phosphoproteomics approach using diagonal RP chromatography as the basic isolation principle. Phosphopeptides present in a tryptic digest of total cellular lysates were first enriched by Fe3+-immobilized metal ion affinity chromatography. Further sorting of the phosphopeptides took place in three steps. First, the resulting peptide mixture was fractionated over reversed-phase chromatography. Second, peptides present in each fraction were treated with phosphatases. Third, the dephosphorylated peptides were then more hydrophobic and shifted towards a later elution interval from the contaminating non-phosphopeptides eluting at the same position as during the primary run. Since the phosphopeptides are isolated as their dephosphorylated form, additional proof for their original phosphorylation state was obtained by split-differential 16O-18O labeling. The method was validated with alpha-casein phosphopeptides and consecutively applied on HepG2 cells. We identified 190 phosphorylated peptides from 152 different proteins. This dataset includes 38 novel protein phosphorylation sites.

Global differential non-gel proteomics by quantitative and stable labeling of tryptic peptides with oxygen-18.

We describe a protocol for quantitative labeling of tryptic peptides with oxygen-18. Proteins are first digested in natural water with trypsin, the pH is then lowered to 4.5 and the mixture is dried. Oxygen-18 water is added and two oxygen-18 atoms are incorporated at the peptides' carboxyl termini. Trypsin is finally inactivated by cysteine alkylation under denaturing conditions, which blocks oxygen back-exchange. The general value of this labeling strategy for differential proteomics is illustrated by the analysis and identification of several couples of differently labeled amino terminal peptides isolated from a human platelet proteome by a previously described chromatographic procedure.