Paulien Meert

Identification of histone H3 clipping activity in human embryonic stem cells

Posttranslational histone modifications are essential features in epigenetic regulatory networks. One of these modifications has remained largely understudied: regulated histone proteolysis. In analogy to the histone H3 clipping during early mouse embryonic stem cell differentiation, we report for the first time that also in human embryonic stem cells this phenomenon takes place in the two different analyzed cell lines. Employing complementary techniques, different cleavage sites could be identified, namely A21, R26 and residue 31. The enzyme responsible for this cleavage is found to be a serine protease. The formation of cleaved H3 follows a considerably variable pattern, depending on the timeframe, culture conditions and culture media applied. Contrary to earlier findings on H3 clipping, our results disconnect the link between declining Oct4 expression and H3 cleavage.

Histone proteolysis: A proposal for categorization into ‘clipping’ and ‘degradation’

We propose for the first time to divide histone proteolysis into “histone degradation” and the epigenetically connoted “histone clipping”. Our initial observation is that these two different classes are very hard to distinguish both experimentally and biologically, because they can both be mediated by the same enzymes. Since the first report decades ago, proteolysis has been found in a broad spectrum of eukaryotic organisms. However, the authors often not clearly distinguish or determine whether degradation or clipping was studied. Given the importance of histone modifications in epigenetic regulation we further elaborate on the different ways in which histone proteolysis could play a role in epigenetics. Finally, unanticipated histone proteolysis has probably left a mark on many studies of histones in the past. In conclusion, we emphasize the significance of reviving the study of histone proteolysis both from a biological and an experimental perspective.

Pitfalls in histone propionylation during bottom‐up mass spectrometry analysis

Despite their important role in regulating gene expression, posttranslational histone modifications remain technically challenging to analyze. For identification by bottom‐up MS, propionylation is required prior to and following trypsin digestion. Hereby, more hydrophobic peptides are generated enabling RP HPLC separation. When histone dynamics are studied in a quantitative manner, specificity, and efficiency of this chemical derivatization are crucial. Therefore we examined eight different protocols, including two different propionylation reagents. This revealed amidation (up to 70%) and methylation (up to 9%) of carboxyl groups as a side reaction. Moreover, incomplete (up to 85%) as well as a specific propionylation (up to 63%) can occur, depending on the protocol. These results highlight the possible pitfalls and implications for data analysis when doing bottom‐up MS on histones.

Phospho-iTRAQ: assessing isobaric labels for the large-scale study of phosphopeptide stoichiometry.

The ability to distinguish between phosphopeptides of high and low stoichiometry is essential to discover the true extent of protein phosphorylation. We here extend the strategy whereby a peptide sample is briefly split in two identical parts and differentially labeled preceding the phosphatase treatment of one part. Our use of isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantitation (iTRAQ) marks the first time that isobaric tags have been applied for the large-scale analysis of phosphopeptides. Our Phospho-iTRAQ method focuses on the unmodified counterparts of phosphorylated peptides, which thus circumvents the ionization, fragmentation, and phospho-enrichment difficulties that hamper quantitation of stoichiometry in most common phosphoproteomics methods. Since iTRAQ enables multiplexing, simultaneous (phospho)proteome comparison between internal replicates and multiple samples is possible. The technique was validated on multiple instrument platforms by adding internal standards of high stoichiometry to a complex lysate of control and EGF-stimulated HeLa cells. To demonstrate the flexibility of Phospho-iTRAQ with regards to the experimental setup, the proteome coverage was extended through gel fractionation, while an internal replicate measurement created more stringent data analysis opportunities. The latest developments in MS instrumentation promise to further increase the resolution of the stoichiometric measurement of Phospho-iTRAQ in the future. The data have been deposited to the ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD001574.

Tackling aspecific side reactions during histone propionylation: the promise of reversing overpropionylation

Histone proteins are essential elements for DNA packaging. Moreover, the PTMs that are extremely abundant on these proteins, contribute in modeling chromatin structure and recruiting enzymes involved in gene regulation, DNA repair and chromosome condensation. This fundamental aspect, together with the epigenetic inheritance of histone PTMs, underlines the importance of having biochemical techniques for their characterization. Over the past two decades, significant improvements in mass accuracy and resolution of mass spectrometers have made LC‐coupled MS the strategy of choice for accurate identification and quantification of protein PTMs. Nevertheless, in previous work we disclosed the limitations and biases of the most widely adopted sample preparation protocols for histone propionylation, required prior to bottom‐up MS analysis. In this work, however, we put forward a new specific and efficient propionylation strategy by means of propionic anhydride. In this method, aspecific overpropionylation at serine (S), threonine (T) and tyrosine (Y) is reversed by adding hydroxylamine (HA). We recommend using this method for future analysis of histones through bottom‐up MS.

Detailed method description for noninvasive monitoring of differentiation status of human embryonic stem cells

The (non)differentiation status of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) is usually analyzed by determination of key pluripotency defining markers (e.g., OCT4, Nanog, SOX2) by means of reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR), flow cytometry (FC), and immunostaining. Despite proven usefulness of these techniques, their destructive nature makes it impossible to follow up on the same hESC colonies for several days, leading to a loss of information. In 2003, an OCT4-eGFP knock-in hESC line to monitor OCT4 expression was developed and commercialized. However, to the best of our knowledge, the use of fluorescence microscopy (FM) for monitoring the OCT4-eGFP expression of these cells without sacrificing them has not been described to date. Here, we describe such a method in detail, emphasizing both its resolving power and its complementary nature to FC as well as the potential pitfalls in standardizing the output of the FM measurements. The potential of the method is demonstrated by comparison of hESCs cultured in several conditions, both feeder free (vitronectin, VN) and grown on feeder cells (mouse embryonic fibroblasts, MEFs).

Extracting histones for the specific purpose of label‐free MS

Extracting histones from cells is the first step in studies that aim to characterize histones and their post‐translational modifications (hPTMs) with MS. In the last decade, label‐free quantification is more frequently being used for MS‐based histone characterization. However, many histone extraction protocols were not specifically designed for label‐free MS. While label‐free quantification has its advantages, it is also very susceptible to technical variation. Here, we adjust an established histone extraction protocol according to general label‐free MS guidelines with a specific focus on minimizing sample handling. These protocols are first evaluated using SDS‐PAGE. Hereafter, a selection of extraction protocols was used in a complete histone workflow for label‐free MS. All protocols display nearly identical relative quantification of hPTMs. We thus show that, depending on the cell type under investigation and at the cost of some additional contaminating proteins, minimizing sample handling can be done during histone isolation. This allows analyzing bigger sample batches, leads to reduced technical variation and minimizes the chance of in vitro alterations to the hPTM snapshot. Overall, these results allow researchers to determine the best protocol depending on the resources and goal of their specific study. Data are available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD002885.

Flagging False Positives Following Untargeted LC–MS Characterization of Histone Post-Translational Modification Combinations

Epigenetic changes can be studied with an untargeted characterization of histone post-translational modifications (PTMs) by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS). While prior information about more than 20 types of histone PTMs exists, little is known about histone PTM combinations (PTMCs). Because of the combinatorial explosion it is intrinsically impossible to consider all potential PTMCs in a database search. Consequentially, high-scoring false positives with unconsidered but correct alternative isobaric PTMCs can occur. Current quality controls can neither estimate the amount of unconsidered alternatives nor flag potential false positives. Here, we propose a conceptual workflow that provides such options. In this workflow, an in silico modeling of all candidate isoforms with known-to-exist PTMs is made. The most frequently occurring PTM sets of these candidate isoforms are determined and used in several database searches. This suppresses the combinatorial explosion while considering as many candidate isoforms as possible. Finally, annotations can be classified as unique or ambiguous, the latter implying false positives. This workflow was evaluated on an LC-MS data set containing 44 histone extracts. We were able to consider 60% of all candidate isoforms. Importantly, 40% of all annotations were classified as ambiguous. This highlights the need for a more thorough evaluation of modified peptide annotations.

Assessing the impact of minimizing arginine conversion in fully defined SILAC culture medium in human embryonic stem cells

We present a fully defined culture system (adapted Essential8TM [E8TM] medium in combination with vitronectin) for human embryonic stem cells that can be used for SILAC purposes. Although a complete incorporation of the labels was observed after 4 days in culture, over 90% of precursors showed at least 10% conversion. To reduce this arginine conversion, E8TM medium was modified by adding (1) l‐proline, (2) l‐ornithine, (3) Nω‐hydroxy‐nor‐l‐arginine acetate, or by (4) lowering the arginine concentration. Reduction of arginine conversion was best obtained by adding 5 mM l‐ornithine, followed by 3.5 mM l‐proline and by lowering the arginine concentration in the medium to 99.5 μM. No major changes in pluripotency and cell amount could be observed for the adapted E8TM media with ornithine and proline. However, our subsequent ion mobility assisted data‐independent acquisition (high‐definition MS) proteome analysis cautions for ongoing changes in the proteome when aiming at longer term suppression of arginine conversion.

Phospho-iTRAQ data article: Assessing isobaric labels for the large-scale study of phosphopeptide stoichiometry.

The ability to distinguish between phosphopeptides of high and low stoichiometry is essential to discover the true extent of protein phosphorylation. We here extend the strategy whereby a peptide sample is briefly split in two identical parts and differentially labeled preceding the phosphatase treatment of one part (Pflieger et al., 2008. Mol. Cell. Proteomics, 7: 326–46 [1]; Wu et al., 2011. Nat. Methods, 8: 677–83 [2]). Our Phospho-iTRAQ method focuses on the unmodified counterparts of phosphorylated peptides, which thus circumvents the ionization, fragmentation, and phospho-enrichment difficulties that hamper quantitation of stoichiometry in most common phosphoproteomics methods. Since iTRAQ enables multiplexing, simultaneous (phospho)proteome comparison between internal replicates and multiple samples is possible. The technique was validated on multiple instrument platforms by adding internal standards of high stoichiometry to a complex lysate of control and EGF-stimulated HeLa cells. To demonstrate the flexibility of PhosphoiTRAQ with regards to the experimental setup and data mining, the proteome coverage was extended through gel fractionation, while an internal replicate measurement creates more stringent data analysis opportunities. The latter allows other researchers to set their own threshold for selecting potential phosphorylation events in the dataset presented here, depending on the biological question or corroboration under investigation. The latest developments in MS instrumentation promise to further increase the resolution of the stoichiometric measurement of Phospho-iTRAQ in the future. The data accompanying the manuscript on this approach (Glibert et al., 2015, J. Proteome Res.14: 2015, 839–49 [5]) have been deposited to the ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD001574.