Robert J. Chalkley

ProteomeXchange provides globally coordinated proteomics data submission and dissemination

5. Tools available and ways to submit data to PX ............................................................. 11 5.1. MS/MS data submissions to PRIDE .................................................................................... 11 5.1.1. Creation of supported files for “Complete” submissions .................................................. 11 5.1.1.1. PRIDE XML .................................................................................................................................. 11 5.1.1.2. mzIdentML ................................................................................................................................. 13 5.1.2. Checking the files before submission (initial quality assessment) ..................................... 14 5.1.3. File submission to PRIDE: the PX submission tool ............................................................. 15 5.1.3.1. General Information ................................................................................................................... 15 5.1.3.2. Functionality, Design and Implementation Details .................................................................... 15 5.1.3.3. New open source libraries made available with PX submission tool ......................................... 18 5.1.3.4. PX Submission Tool Java Web Start ............................................................................................ 18 5.1.4. File submission to PRIDE: Command line support using Aspera ........................................ 19 5.1.5. Examples of Partial submissions to PRIDE ......................................................................... 19 5.2. SRM data submissions via PASSEL ..................................................................................... 20

Mass Spectrometric Analysis of Protein Mixtures at Low Levels Using Cleavable 13C-Isotope-coded Affinity Tag and Multidimensional Chromatography

In order to identify and compare the protein content of very low quantity samples of high complexity, a protocol has been established that combines the differential profiling strength of a new cleavable 13C isotope-coded affinity tag (cICAT) reagent with the high sequence coverage provided by multidimensional liquid chromatography and two modes of tandem mass spectrometry. Major objectives during protocol optimization were to minimize sample losses and establish a robust procedure that employs volatile buffer systems that are highly compatible with mass spectrometry. Cleavable ICAT-labeled tryptic peptides were separated from nonlabeled peptides by avidin affinity chromatography. Subsequently, peptide samples were analyzed by nanoflow liquid chromatography electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization tandem mass spectrometry. The use of two ionization/instrumental configurations led to complementary peptide identifications that increased the confidence of protein assignments. Examples that illustrate the power of this strategy are taken from two different projects: i) immunoaffinity purified complexes containing the prion protein from the murine brain, and ii) human tracheal epithelium gland secretions. In these studies, a large number of novel proteins were identified using stringent match criteria, in addition to many that had been identified in previous experiments. In the latter case, the ICAT method produced significant new information on changes that occur in protein expression levels in a patient suffering from cystic fibrosis.

O-Linked N-Acetylglucosamine Proteomics of Postsynaptic Density Preparations Using Lectin Weak Affinity Chromatography and Mass Spectrometry

O-GlcNAc is a widespread dynamic carbohydrate modification of cytosolic and nuclear proteins with features analogous to phosphorylation. O-GlcNAc acts critically in many cellular processes, including signal transduction, protein degradation, and regulation of gene expression. However, the study of its specific regulatory functions has been limited by difficulties in mapping sites of O-GlcNAc modification. We report methods for direct enrichment and identification of in vivo O-GlcNAc-modified peptides through lectin weak affinity chromatography (LWAC) and mass spectrometry. The effectiveness of this strategy on complex peptide mixtures was demonstrated through enrichment of 145 unique O-GlcNAc-modified peptides from a postsynaptic density preparation. 65 of these O-GlcNAc-modified peptides were sequenced and belonged to proteins with diverse functions in synaptic transmission. β-Elimination/Michael addition, MS3 on O-GlcNAc neutral loss ions, and electron capture dissociation were shown to facilitate analysis of O-GlcNAc-modified peptides/sites from lectin weak affinity chromatography enriched postsynaptic density samples. Bassoon and Piccolo, proteins critical to synapse assembly and vesicle docking, were extensively modified by O-GlcNAc. In some cases, O-GlcNAc was mapped to peptides previously identified as phosphorylated, indicating potential interplay between these modifications. Shared substrate amino acid context was apparent in subsets of O-GlcNAc-modified peptides, including “PVST” and a novel “TTA” motif (two hydroxyl-containing amino acids adjacent to an alanine). The results suggest specific roles for O-GlcNAc modification in synaptic transmission, establish a basis for site-specific regulatory studies, and provide methods that will facilitate O-GlcNAc proteome analysis across a wide variety of cells and tissues.

Identification of protein O-GlcNAcylation sites using electron transfer dissociation mass spectrometry on native peptides

Protein O-GlcNAcylation occurs in all animals and plants and is implicated in modulation of a wide range of cytosolic and nuclear protein functions, including gene silencing, nutrient and stress sensing, phosphorylation signaling, and diseases such as diabetes and Alzheimers. The limiting factor impeding rapid progress in deciphering the biological functions of protein O-GlcNAcylation has been the inability to easily identify exact residues of modification. We describe a robust, high-sensitivity strategy able to assign O-GlcNAcylation sites of native modified peptides using electron transfer dissociation mass spectrometry. We have studied the murine postsynaptic density pseudoorganelle and report the assignment of 58 modification sites from a single experiment–significantly increasing the number of sites known in the literature. Components of several repressor complexes, such as NCoR1, polyhomeotic-like protein3, and EMSY, are modified. In addition, 28 O-GlcNAc sites were found on the protein Bassoon, effectively matching the number of phosphorylation sites reported previously on this protein. This finding suggests that on certain proteins, O-GlcNAcylation may be as extensive and important as phosphorylation in regulating protein function. Three of the newly discovered O-GlcNAc sites on Bassoon have previously been reported as phosphorylation sites, highlighting the interplay of the modifications. Surprisingly, several peptides with GlcNAc modifications on asparagines within the N-X-S/T consensus sequence were also observed from membrane protein extracellular domains. This powerful strategy fulfills a long-standing need in the biological community by facilitating modification site identifications that will accelerate understanding of the biological significance of this elusive regulatory posttranslational modification.

A Proteomics Study of Brassinosteroid Response in Arabidopsis

The plant steroid hormones brassinosteroids (BRs) play an important role in a wide range of developmental and physiological processes. How BR signaling regulates diverse processes remains unclear. To understand the molecular details of BR responses, we performed a proteomics study of BR-regulated proteins in Arabidopsis using two-dimensional DIGE coupled with LC-MS/MS. We identified 42 BR-regulated proteins, which are predicted to play potential roles in BR regulation of specific cellular processes, such as signaling, cytoskeleton rearrangement, vesicle trafficking, and biosynthesis of hormones and vitamins. Analyses of the BR-insensitive mutant bri1-116 and BR-hypersensitive mutant bzr1-1D identified five proteins (PATL1, PATL2, THI1, AtMDAR3, and NADP-ME2) affected both by BR treatment and in the mutants, suggesting their importance in BR action. Selected proteins were further studied using insertion knock-out mutants or immunoblotting. Interestingly about 80% of the BR-responsive proteins were not identified in previous microarray studies, and direct comparison between protein and RNA changes in BR mutants revealed a very weak correlation. RT-PCR analysis of selected genes revealed gene-specific kinetic relationships between RNA and protein responses. Furthermore BR-regulated posttranslational modification of BiP2 protein was detected as spot shifts in two-dimensional DIGE. This study provides novel insights into the molecular networks that link BR signaling to specific cellular and physiological responses.

Comprehensive Analysis of a Multidimensional Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometry Dataset Acquired on a Quadrupole Selecting, Quadrupole Collision Cell, Time-of-flight Mass Spectrometer II. New Developments in Protein Prospector Allow for Reliable and Comprehensive Automatic Analysis of Large Datasets

A thorough analysis of the protein interaction partners of the yeast GTPase Gsp1p was carried out by a multidimensional chromatography strategy of strong cation exchange fractionation of peptides followed by reverse phase LC-ESI-MSMS using a QSTAR instrument. This dataset was then analyzed using the latest developmental version of Protein Prospector. The Prospector search results were also compared with results from the search engine “Mascot” using a new results comparison program within Prospector named “SearchCompare.” The results from this study demonstrate that the high quality data produced on a quadrupole selecting, quadrupole collision cell, time-of-flight (QqTOF) geometry instrument allows for confident assignment of the vast majority of interpretable spectra by current search engines.

In-depth Analysis of Tandem Mass Spectrometry Data from Disparate Instrument Types

Mass spectrometric analyses of protein digests produce large numbers of fragmentation spectra that are not identified by routine database searching strategies. Some of these spectra could be identified by development of improved search engines. However, many of these spectra represent fragmentation of peptide components bearing modifications that are not routinely considered in database searches. Here we present new software within Protein Prospector that allows comprehensive analysis of data sets by analyzing the data at increasing levels of depth. Analysis of published data sets is presented to illustrate that the software is not biased to any instrument types. The results show that these data sets contain many modified peptides. As well as searching for known modification types, Protein Prospector permits the detection and identification of unexpected or novel modifications by searching for any mass shift within a user-specified mass range to any chosen amino acid(s). Several modifications never previously reported in proteomics data were identified in these standard data sets using this mass modification searching approach.

O-Sulfonation of Serine and Threonine Mass Spectrometric Detection and Characterization of a New Posttranslational Modification in Diverse Proteins Throughout the Eukaryotes

Protein sulfonation on serine and threonine residues is described for the first time. This post-translational modification is shown to occur in proteins isolated from organisms representing a broad span of eukaryote evolution, including the invertebrate mollusk Lymnaea stagnalis, the unicellular malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum, and humans. Detection and structural characterization of this novel post-translational modification was carried out using liquid chromatography coupled to electrospray tandem mass spectrometry on proteins including a neuronal intermediate filament and a myosin light chain from the snail, a cathepsin-C-like enzyme from the parasite, and the cytoplasmic domain of the human orphan receptor tyrosine kinase Ror-2. These findings suggest that sulfonation of serine and threonine may be involved in multiple functions including protein assembly and signal transduction.

Characterization of Tetrahymena Histone H2B Variants and Posttranslational Populations by Electron Capture Dissociation (ECD) Fourier Transform Ion Cyclotron Mass Spectrometry (FT-ICR MS)

This work describes the nature and sequence information content of the electron capture dissociation mass spectra for the intact Tetrahymena histone H2B. Two major variants of this protein were present bearing nominal modifications of both +42 and +84 Da. This work describes identification of the nature of these two modifications. For example, using gas-phase selection and isolation of the +42-Da modified species, from a background of two H2B variants each present in six or more posttranslationally modified isoforms, we were able to determine that this +42-Da modification isoform bears trimethylation rather than acetylation. LC-CIDMS analysis was also employed on digested preparations to obtain complementary detail of the nature of site-specific posttranslational modifications. This study establishes that integration of the information from these two datasets provides a comprehensive map of posttranslational occupancy for each particular covalent assemblage selected for structural investigation.

Modification Site Localization Scoring: Strategies and Performance

Using enrichment strategies many research groups are routinely producing large data sets of post-translationally modified peptides for proteomic analysis using tandem mass spectrometry. Although search engines are relatively effective at identifying these peptides with a defined measure of reliability, their localization of site/s of modification is often arbitrary and unreliable. The field continues to be in need of a widely accepted metric for false localization rate that accurately describes the certainty of site localization in published data sets and allows for consistent measurement of differences in performance of emerging scoring algorithms. In this article are discussed the main strategies currently used by software for modification site localization and ways of assessing the performance of these different tools. Methods for representing ambiguity are reviewed and a discussion of how the approaches transfer to different data types and modifications is presented.