The application of MALDI TOF MS in biopharmaceutical research.

The development and quality assessment of modern biopharmaceuticals, particularly protein and peptide drugs, requires an array of analytical techniques to assess the integrity of the bioactive molecule during formulation and administration. Mass spectrometry is one of these methods and is particularly suitable for determining chemical modifications of protein and peptide drugs. The emphasis of this review is the identification of covalent interactions between protein and peptide bioactives with polymeric pharmaceutical formulations using mass spectrometry with the main focus on matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) coupled tandem time-of-flight (TOF/TOF) mass spectrometry (MS). The basics of MALDI TOF MS and collision-induced dissociation (CID)-based ion fragmentation will be explained and applications for qualitative characterization of protein and peptide drugs and their interactions with pharmaceutical polymers will be discussed using three case studies.

Release and bioactivity of PACA nanoparticles containing D-Lys6-GnRH for brushtail possum fertility control.

Poly(ethylcyanoacrylate) (PECA) nanoparticles containing the chemical sterilitant D-Lys6-GnRH were prepared by an in situ interfacial polymerization technique. Their potential as a peroral delivery system for biocontrol of the brushtail possum, a major pest species in New Zealand, was evaluated. Peptide release from resulting particles was studied in vitro in artificial gastric juice (AGJ), simulated intestinal fluids (SIF) and brushtail possum plasma. The nanoparticles released a small fraction of bioactive over 6h in AGJ and SIF (<5%), while staying intact and retaining fractions of intact D-Lys6-GnRH. In contrast, 60% of D-Lys6-GnRH was released after 1h in possum plasma. The nanoparticles were also administered in vivo into the caecum of brushtail possums. A significant biological response, measured as an increase in plasma luteinizing hormone (LH), was evident 10 min after administration. This demonstrates not only that PECA nanoparticles were able to facilitate the uptake of D-Lys6-GnRH from the caecum into systemic circulation but also that sufficient bioactive peptide reached the pituitary to exert a significant LH response following GnRH receptor mediated endocytosis. Hence, it can be concluded that PECA nanoparticles comprise a promising formulation strategy for the peroral delivery of the chemical sterilitant D-Lys6-GnRH to the brushtail possum in New Zealand.

Characterization of Peptide Polymer Interactions in Poly(alkylcyanoacrylate) Nanoparticles: A Mass Spectrometric Approach.

Drug/polymer interactions occur during in situ polymerization of poly(alkylcyanoacrylate) (PACA) formulations. We have used MALDI ionization coupled tandem time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometry as an accurate method to characterize covalent peptide/polymer interactions of PACA nanoparticles with the bioactives D-Lys6-GnRH, insulin, [Asn1-Val5]-angiotensin II, and fragments of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1 (1-3)) and human adrenocorticotropic hormone (h-ACTH, (18-39)) at the molecular level. Covalent interactions of peptide with alkylcyanoacrylate were identified for D-Lys6-GnRH, [Asn1-Val5]-angiotensin II and IGF-1 (1-3). D-Lys6-GnRH and [Asn1-Val5]-angiotensin II were modified at their histidine side chain within the peptide, whilst IGF-1 (1-3) was modified at the C-terminal glutamic acid residue. The more complex protein insulin was not modified despite the presence of 2 histidine residues. This might be explained by the engagement of histidine residues in the folding and sterical arrangement of insulin under polymerization conditions. As expected, h-ACTH (18-39) that does not contain histidine residues did not interfere in the polymerization process. Lowering the pH did not prevent the covalent association of PACA with D-Lys6-GnRH or IGF-1 (1-3). Conclusively, protein and peptide bioactives are potentially reactive towards alkylcyanoacrylate monomers via various mechanisms with limited interference of pH. Histidines and C-terminal glutamic acid residues have been identified as potential sites of interaction. The likelihood of their engagement in the polymerization process (initiators), however, seems dependent on their sterical availability. The reactivity of nucleophilic functional groups should always be considered and bioactives examined for their potential to covalently interfere with alkylcyanoacrylate monomers, especially when designing PACA delivery systems for protein and peptide biopharmaceuticals.

Characterization of Peptide Polymer Interactions in Poly(alkylcyanoacrylate) Nanoparticles: A Mass Spectrometric Approach.

Drug/polymer interactions occur during in situ polymerization of poly(alkylcyanoacrylate) (PACA) formulations. We have used MALDI ionization coupled tandem time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometry as an accurate method to characterize covalent peptide/polymer interactions of PACA nanoparticles with the bioactives D-Lys6-GnRH, insulin, [Asn1-Val5]-angiotensin II, and fragments of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1 (1-3)) and human adrenocorticotropic hormone (h-ACTH, (18-39)) at the molecular level. Covalent interactions of peptide with alkylcyanoacrylate were identified for D-Lys6-GnRH, [Asn1-Val5]-angiotensin II and IGF-1 (1-3). D-Lys6-GnRH and [Asn1-Val5]-angiotensin II were modified at their histidine side chain within the peptide, whilst IGF-1 (1-3) was modified at the C-terminal glutamic acid residue. The more complex protein insulin was not modified despite the presence of 2 histidine residues. This might be explained by the engagement of histidine residues in the folding and sterical arrangement of insulin under polymerization conditions. As expected, h-ACTH (18-39) that does not contain histidine residues did not interfere in the polymerisation process. Lowering the pH did not prevent the covalent association of PACA with D-Lys6-GnRH or IGF-1 (1-3). Conclusively, protein and peptide bioactives are potentially reactive towards alkylcyanoacrylate monomers via various mechanisms with limited interference of pH. Histidines and C-terminal glutamic acid residues have been identified as potential sites of interaction. The likelihood of their engagement in the polymerisation process (initiators), however, seems dependant on their sterical availability. The reactivity of nucleophilic functional groups should always be considered and bioactives examined for their potential to covalently interfere with alkylcyanoacrylate monomers, especially when designing PACA delivery systems for protein and peptide biopharmaceuticals.

Rapid and specific high-performance liquid chromatography for the in vitro quantification of D-Lys6-GnRH in a microemulsion-type formulation in the presence of peptide oxidation products.

A high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method for assay of d-Lys(6)-GnRH contained in a microemulsion-type formulation is described. The peptide is extracted from the microemulsion matrix and quantified using a two-step gradient method. Separation from microemulsion compounds and potential peptide oxidation products was achieved on a Jupiter C(18) column at 40 degrees C, using a gradient of 10-35% CH(3)CN for peptide elution. The correlation of peak intensity measured at 220 nm and peptide concentration was linear over the range 2.5-60 microg/mL with a correlation coefficient of 0.9997 and a y-intercept not significantly different from zero (p > 0.05). Intraday and interday variability of the assay was less than 5% for multiple injections of samples containing 7.5, 30 and 60 microg/mL. The lower limit of quantitation was calculated to be 0.38 microg/mL, and the lower limit of detection was 0.13 microg/mL. The assay was applied to samples that were stressed under physiological conditions (37 degrees C, pH 7.4) over 4 days. Three degradation peaks were well resolved from the parent peptide, demonstrating the selectivity of the assay. Off-line MALDI TOF mass spectrometry was applied to identify these degradation species as oxidation products of the peptide.

Histidine residues in the peptide D-Lys(6)-GnRH: potential for copolymerization in polymeric nanoparticles.

Poly(ethylcyanoacrylate) (PECA) nanoparticles containing the bioactive d-Lys(6)-GnRH were manufactured by an in situ interfacial polymerization process using a w/o-microemulsion template containing the peptide in the dispersed aqueous pseudophase of the microemulsion. Polymeric nanoparticles were characterized using PCS, RP-HPLC (bulk level) and MALDI TOF mass spectrometry (molecular level). The peptide d-Lys(6)-GnRH was reactive with the alkylcyanoacrylate monomer, resulting in some of the peptide copolymerizing with the monomer. MALDI TOF/TOF (tandem) analysis revealed that the histidine residue in position 2 of d-Lys(6)-GnRH interacts covalently in the polymerization process. A reaction mechanism for this nucleophilic interference is suggested. The copolymerization reaction appeared to occur within seconds after the addition of the monomer to the microemulsion. The surface charge of resulting nanoparticles was less negative (-3 mV) compared with the zeta potential of empty nanoparticles (-27.5 mV). The copolymerization yielded high entrapment rates of 95 +/- 4% of peptide, but showed limited release ( approximately 11%) of free peptide over 5 days. A separate experiment demonstrated that the addition of d-Lys(6)-GnRH to preformed empty PECA nanoparticles (ex situ) also yielded fractions of copolymerized peptide suggesting a certain proportion of polymer remains available for copolymerization possibly through an unzipping depolymerization/repolymerization process. Therefore, the reactivity of histidine residues in bioactives needs to be considered whenever using the bioactive in situ or ex situ with polymeric PECA nanoparticles.