Structural assignment of disialylated biantennary N-glycan isomers derivatized with 2-aminopyridine using negative-ion multistage tandem mass spectral matching

To investigate the possibility of structural assignment based on negative-ion multistage tandem mass (MS(n)) spectral matching, four isomers of disialylated biantennary N-glycans (alpha2-6 and/or alpha2-3 linked sialic acid on alpha1-6 and alpha1-3 antennae) derivatized with 2-aminopyridine (PA) were analyzed by employing high-performance liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization linear ion trap time-of-flight mass spectrometry (HPLC/ESI-LIT-TOFMS), which uses helium gas for ion trapping and collision-induced dissociation (CID). It is shown that the MS(2) spectra derived from each precursor ion [M-2H](2-) are reproducible and useful for distinguishing the four isomers. Thus, they can be assigned by negative-ion MS(2) spectral matching based on correlation coefficients. In addition, MS(3) spectra derived from D-type fragment ions clearly differentiate the alpha2-3- or alpha2-6-linked sialic acid on the alpha1-6 antenna due to their characteristic spectral patterns. The C(4)-type fragment ions, which are produced from both the alpha1-6 and alpha1-3 antennae, show the characteristic MS(3) spectra reflecting alpha2-3- or alpha2-6- linkage type or a mixture of both types. Thus, the differentiation and assignment of these disialylated biantennary N-glycan isomers can also be supported with the MS(3) spectra of C(4)- and D-type ions.     

Structural assignment of isomeric 2-aminopyridine-derivatized oligosaccharides using negative-ion MSn spectral matching

To investigate the possibility of structural assignment based on negative-ion MS2 spectral matching, three isomeric pairs of 2-aminopyridine (PA)-derivatized non-fucosylated, fucosylated, and sialylated oligosaccharides (complex type N-glycans) were analyzed using high-performance liquid chromatography/ion trap mass spectrometry (HPLC/ITMS) with a sonic-spray ionization (SSI) source. In the SSI negative-ion mode the deprotonated molecule [M-2H]2- becomes prominent. Negative-ion MS2 spectra derived from such ions contain many fragment types (B and Y, C and Z, A, and D) and therefore are more informative than the positive-ion MS2 spectra derived from [M+H+Na]2+ ions, which usually consist mainly of B and Y fragment ions. In particular the internal ions (D- and E-type ions) provided useful information about the alpha1-6 branching patterns and the bisecting GlcNAc residue. Spectral matching based on the correlation coefficients between negative-ion MS2 spectra was performed in a manner similar to the positive-ion MS2 spectral matching previously reported. It was demonstrated that negative-ion MS2 spectral matching is as useful and applicable to the structural assignment of relatively large non-fucosylated, fucosylated, and sialylated PA-oligosaccharide isomers as its positive-ion counterpart.     

Direct structural assignment of neutral and sialylated N-glycans of glycopeptides using collision-induced dissociation MSn spectral matching

Mass spectrometric analyses of various N-glycans binding to proteins and peptides are highly desirable for elucidating their biological roles. An approach based on collision-induced dissociation (CID) MS(n) spectra acquired by electrospray ionization linear ion trap time-of-flight mass spectrometry (ESI-LIT-TOFMS) in the positive- and negative-ion modes has been proposed as a direct method of assigning N-glycans without releasing them from N-glycopeptides. In the positive-ion mode of this approach, the MS(2) spectrum of N-glycopeptide was acquired so that a glycoside-bond cleavage occurs in the chitobiose residue (i.e., GlcNAcbeta1-4GlcNAc, GlcNAc: N-acetylglucosamine) attached to asparagine (N), and two charges on the [M+H+Na](2+) precursor ion are shared with both of the resulting fragments. These fragments are sodiated B(n)-type fragment ions of oligosaccharide (N-glycan) and a protonated peptide ion retaining one GlcNAc residue on the asparagine (N) residue. The structure of N-glycan was assigned by comparing MS(3) spectra derived from both the sodiated B(n)-type fragment ions of N-glycopeptide and the PA (2-aminopyridine) N-glycan standard (i.e., MS(n) spectral matching). In a similar manner, the structural assignment of sialylated N-glycan was performed by employing the negative-ion CID MS(n) spectra of deprotonated B(n)-type fragment ions of N-glycopeptide and the PA N-glycan standard. The efficacy of this approach was tested with chicken egg yolk glycopeptides with a neutral and a sialylated N-glycan, and human serum IgG glycopeptides with neutral N-glycan isomers. These results suggest that the approach based on MS(n) spectral matching is useful for the direct and simple structural assignment of neutral and sialylated N-glycans of glycopeptides.     

Complementary structural information of positive- and negative-ion MSn spectra of glycopeptides with neutral and sialylated N-glycans

Positive- and negative-ion MSn spectra of chicken egg yolk glycopeptides binding a neutral and a sialylated N-glycan were acquired by using electrospray ionization linear ion trap time-of-flight mass spectrometry (ESI-LIT-TOFMS) and collision-induced dissociation (CID) with helium as collision gas. Several characteristic differences were observed between the positive- and negative-ion CID MSn (n = 2, 3) spectra. In the positive-ion MS2 spectra, the peptide moiety was presumably stable, but the neutral N-glycan moiety caused several B-type fragmentations and the sialylated N-glycan almost lost sialic acid(s). In contrast, in the negative-ion MS2 spectra, the peptide moiety caused several side-chain and N-glycan residue (e.g., N-acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc) residue) fragmentations in addition to backbone cleavages, but the N-glycan moieties were relatively stable. The positive-ion MS3 spectra derived from the protonated peptide ion containing a GlcNAc residue (203.1 Da) provided enough information to determine the peptide amino-acid sequence including the glycosylation site, while the negative-ion MS3 spectra derived from the deprotonated peptide containing a 0,2X1-type cross-ring cleavage (83.1 Da) complicated the peptide sequence analysis due to side-chain and 0,2X1 residue related fragmentations. However, for the structural information of the N-glycan moiety of the glycopeptides, the negative-ion CID MS3 spectra derived from the deprotonated 2,4A6-type cross-ring cleavage ion (neutral N-glycan) or the doubly deprotonated B6-type fragment ion (sialylated N-glycan) are more informative than are those of the corresponding positive-ion CID MS3 spectra. Thus, the positive-ion mode of CID is useful for the analyses of peptide amino-acid sequences including the glycosylation site. The negative-ion mode of CID is especially useful for sialylated N-glycan structural analysis. Therefore, in the structural analysis of N-glycopeptides, their roles are complementary.     

Structural characterization of cardiolipin by tandem quadrupole and multiple-stage quadrupole ion-trap mass spectrometry with electrospray ionization

We report negative-ion electrospray tandem mass spectrometric methods for structural characterization of cardiolipin (CL), a four-acyl-chain phospholipid containing two distinct phosphatidyl moieties, of which structural assignment of the fatty acid residues attached to the glycerol backbones performed by low-energy CAD tandem mass spectrometry has not been previously described. The low-energy MS2-spectra of the [M - H]- and [M - 2H]2- ions obtained with ion-trap or with tandem quadrupole instrument combined with ion-trap MS3-spectra or with source CAD product-ion spectra provide complete structural information for CL characterization. The MS2-spectra of the [M - H]- ions contain two sets of prominent fragment ions that comprise a phosphatidic acid, a dehydrated phosphatidylglycerol, and a (phosphatidic acid + 136) anion. The substantial differences in the abundances of the two distinct phosphatidic anions observed in the MS2-spectra of the [M -H]- ions lead to the assignment of the phosphatidyl moieties attached to the 1' or 3' position of central glycerol. Upon further collisional dissociation, the MS3-spectra of the phosphatidic anions provide information to identify the fatty acyl substituents and their position in the glycerol backbone. The MS2-spectra of the [M - 2H]2- ions obtained with TSQ or ITMS contain complementary information to confirm structural assignment. The applications of the above methods in the differentiation of cardiolipin isomers and in the identification of complex cardiolipin species consisting of multiple molecular structures are also demonstrated.     

Structural assignment of isomeric 2-aminopyridine-derivatized oligosaccharides using MSn spectral matching

Two isomeric pairs of 2-aminopyridine (PA)-derivatized fucosylated and non-fucosylated oligosaccharides (complex-type N-glycans of IgG) were analyzed using liquid chromatography/ion trap mass spectrometry (LC/ITMS) with a sonic spray ionization source and by varying the collision-induced dissociation voltage. Reproducibility of MS(n) (n = 2) spectra obtained by LC/ITMS was tested considering both fragment ions (m/z) and intensities. A comparison of their MS(n) spectra and evaluation of similarities (or matching), based on correlation coefficients between MS(n) spectra, was investigated as a possibility for structural assignment of the isomers. It is shown that such MS(n) spectral matching is useful and applicable to the structural assignment of relatively large fucosylated and sialylated PA-oligosaccharides released from IgG based on Bn- and Yn-type fragmentations of the corresponding [M+H+Na](2+) ions.     

Branching pattern and sequence analysis of underivatized oligosaccharides by combined MS/MS of singly and doubly charged molecular ions in negative-ion electrospray mass spectrometry

We previously reported that sequence and partial linkage information, including chain and blood-group types, of reducing oligosaccharides can be obtained from negative-ion electrospray CID MS/MS on a quadrupole-orthogonal time-of-flight instrument with high sensitivity and without derivatization (Chai, W.; Piskarev, V.; Lawson, A. M. Anal. Chem. 2001, 73, 651-657). In contrast to oligonucleotides and peptides, oligosaccharides can form branched structures that result in a greater degree of structural complexity. In the present work we apply negative-ion electrospray CID MS/MS to core-branching pattern analysis using nine 3,6-branched and variously fucosylated oligosaccharides based on hexasaccharide backbones LNH/LNnH as examples. The important features of the method are the combined use of CID MS/MS of singly and doubly charged molecular ions of underivatized oligosaccharides to deduce the branching pattern and to assign the structural details of each of the 3- and 6-branches. These spectra give complimentary structural information. In the spectra of [M - H]-, fragment ions from the 6-linked branch are dominant and those from the 3-linked branch are absent, while fragment ions from both branches occur in the spectra of [M - 2H]2-. This allows the distinction of fragment ions derived from either the 3- or 6-branches. In addition, a unique D2beta-3 ion, arising from double D-type cleavage at the 3-linked glycosidic bond of the branched Gal core residue, provides direct evidence of the branching pattern with sequence and partial linkage information being derived from C- and A-type fragmentations, respectively.     

Sequencing of tri- and tetraantennary N-glycans containing sialic acid by negative mode ESI QTOF tandem MS

Application of the negative mode electrospray ionization-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (ESI QTOF) tandem MS for determination of substitution patterns by sialic acid and/or fucose and extention by additional LacNAc disaccharide units in single branches of multianternary N-glycans from biological samples is described. Fragmentation patterns which can be obtained by low energy collision-induced dissociation (CID) using the QTOF instrument include cleavage ions, diagnostic for determination of antennarity and for specific structural features of single antennae. Systematic fragmentation studies in the negative ion mode were focussed toward formation of the D diagnostic ion relevant for assignment of 3- and 6-antennae in complex N-glycans carrying three and four antennae in combination with epitope-relevant B- and C-type ions. For validation of this approach ESI QTOF fragmentation of the permethylated analogues was carried out in the positive ion mode. Using this strategy, products of in vitro glycosylation reactions were investigated in order to clarify some general aspects of N-glycan acceptor specificity during biosynthesis. Alpha1-3fucosylation using GDP-fucose along with a soluble form of the recombinant human alpha1-3fucosyltransferase VI was carried out on tri- and tetraantennary precursors to test structural requirements for formation of Le(x) versus sLe(x) motifs.     

Structural analysis of O-glycopeptides employing negative- and positive-ion multi-stage mass spectra obtained by collision-induced and electron-capture dissociations in linear ion trap time-of-flight mass spectrometry

Structural analyses of various glycans attached to proteins and peptides are highly desirable for elucidating their biological roles. An approach based on mass spectrometry (MS) combining both collision-induced dissociation (CID) and electron-capture dissociation (ECD) in the positive- and negative-ion modes has been proposed as a simple and direct method of assigning an O-glycan without releasing it from the peptide and of determining the amino acid sequence of the peptide and glycosylation site. The instrument used is an electrospray ionization (ESI) linear ion trap (LIT) time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometer with tandem LITs for CID by He gas and ECD. The proposed approach was tested with two synthetic O-glycopeptides binding a sialyl Lewis x (sLe(x)) oligosaccharide and a 3'-sialyl N-acetyllactosamine (3'-SLN) on a serine (S) residue. In the negative-ion mode, the CID MS(2) spectra of O-glycopeptides showed a relatively abundant glycoside-bond cleavage between the core N-acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc) and serine (S) that yields deprotonated C(3)-type fragment ions of O-glycan and deprotonated Z(0)-type peptide ions. The structure of the sLe(x) (3'-SLN) oligosaccharide was simply assigned by comparing the CID MS(3) spectrum derived from the C(3)-type fragment ion with the CID MS(2) spectra of the sLe(x) and sLe(a) (3'- and 6'-SLN) standards (i.e., negative-ion MS(n) spectral matching). The amino acid sequence of the peptide including the glycosylation site was determined from the ECD MS(2) spectrum in the positive-ion mode.     

Vibrational circular dichroism (VCD) studies on disaccharides in the CH region: toward discrimination of the glycosidic linkage position

The structural features of carbohydrates are a combination of 1) sequence and types of mono-sugars, 2) stereochemistry of their glycosidic linkages, and 3) their glycosidic linkage sites. We performed the first systematic VCD study on glycoside linking site discrimination. VCD spectra, in the CH stretching region from 2000 to 4000 cm(-1), of eleven glucobioses (trehalose (alpha1-alpha1), neotrehalose (alpha1-beta1), isotrehalose (beta1-beta1), kojibiose (alpha1-2), nigerose (alpha1-3), maltose (alpha1-4), isomaltose (alpha1-6), sophorose (beta1-2), laminaribiose (beta1-3), cellobiose (beta1-4), gentiobiose (beta1-6)) suggested a possible new discrimination method for glyco analysis, while VCD spectra in the mid-IR region distinguished the stereochemistry (alpha or beta) of the glycosidic linkage. Both reducing and nonreducing glucobioses showed different VCD spectral features compared to their constituent D-glucose and the anomer-fixed model compounds. Interresidue interaction such as hydrogen bonding was suggested to cause these spectral differences. Interplay between residues is a common phenomenon and thus VCD analysis could be applicable to other di-, oligo- or poly-saccharides. Several isotropic labeled compounds were also measured to support spectral assignment and interpretation.     

Structural characterization by both positive and negative electrospray ion trap mass spectrometry of oligogalacturonates purified by high-performance anion-exchange chromatography

The off-line coupling of high-performance anion-exchange chromatography to electrospray ion trap mass spectrometry (ESI-IT-MS) is described. Two sets of isocratic conditions were optimised for the semi-preparative purification of oligogalacturonates of degree of polymerisation from 4 to 6 by monitoring eluates with either pulsed amperometric detection or evaporative light scattering detection in the presence of an online Dionex Carbohydrate Membrane Desalter (CMD). In these conditions, purified oligogalacturonate solutions were suitable, without further desalting steps, for infusion ESI-IT-MS experiments. This paper provides some interesting features of positive and negative ESI-IT-multiple MS (MSn) of these acidic oligosaccharides. The spectra acquired in both ion modes show characteristic fragments resulting from glycosidic bond and cross-ring cleavages. Under negative ionization conditions, the fragmentation of the singly-charged [M-H]- ions, as well as the Ci-, and Zi-, fragment ions through sequential MSn experiments, was always dominated by product ions from C- and Z-type glycosidic cleavages. All spectra also displayed 0.2 A-type cross-ring cleavage ions which carry linkage information. Collision-induced dissociation (CID) spectra of sodium-cationized species obtained under positive ionization conditions were more complex. Successive MSn experiments also led to the 0.2 A-type cross-ring cleavage ions observed together with B- and Y-type ions. The presence of the 0.2 A ion series was related to Mr 60 (C2H4O2) losses. Combined with the absence of the Mr 30 (CH2O) and the Mr 90 (C3H6O3) ions, these ions were indicative of 1-4 type glycosidic linkage.     

Characterization of cardiolipin as the sodiated ions by positive-ion electrospray ionization with multiple stage quadrupole ion-trap mass spectrometry

The application of multiple-stage ion-trap (IT) mass spectrometric methods for the structural characterization of cardiolipin (CL), a 1,3-bisphosphatidyl-sn-glycerol that consists of four fatty acyl chains and three glycerol backbones (designated as A, B, and central glycerol, respectively), as the sodiated adduct ions in the positive-ion mode was evaluated. Following collisionally activated dissociation (CAD), the [M - 2H + 3Na]+ ions of CL yield two prominent fragment ion pairs that consist of the phosphatidyl moieties attached to the 1'- and 3'-position of the central glycerol, respectively, resulting from the differential losses of the diacylglycerol moieties containing A and B glycerol, respectively. The results are consistent with those previously described for the [M - H]- and [M - 2H + Na]- ions in the negative-ion mode, thus permitting assignment of the two phosphatidyl moieties attached to the 1'- or 3'-position of the central glycerol. The identities of the fatty acyl substituents and their positions on the glycerol backbones (glycerol A and B) are deduced from further degradation of the above ion pairs that give the fragment ions reflecting the fatty acid substituents at the sn-1 (or sn-1') and sn-2 (or sn-2') positions. The ions that arise from losses of the fatty acid substituents at sn-1 and sn-1', respectively, are prominent, but the analogous ions from losses of the fatty acid substituents at sn-2 and sn-2', respectively, are of low abundance in the MS2 product-ion spectra. This feature further confirms the assignment of the positions of the fatty acid substituents. The similar IT multiple-stage mass spectrometric approaches including MS2 and MS3 for structural characterization of CL using its [M + Na]+ and the [M - H + 2Na]+ ions are also readily applicable. However, their uses for structural characterization are less desirable because formation of the [M + Na]+ and the [M - H + 2Na]+ ions for CL is not predictable.     

Differentiation of 1-O-alk-1′-enyl-2-acyl and 1-O-alkyl-2-acyl Glycerophospholipids by Multiple-Stage Linear Ion-Trap Mass Spectrometry with Electrospray Ionization

We described linear ion-trap mass spectrometric approaches applying MS(3) and MS(4) toward to the structural characterization of 1-O-alk-1'-enyl-2-acyl-, 1-O-alkyl-2-acyl-, and diacyl-glycerophospholipids (GPL) as the [M - H](-) ions desorbed by ESI in negative-ion mode. Further dissociation of the [lM - H - R(2)CO(2)H - polar head group](-) ions from the [M - H](-) ions of GPL that have undergone the consecutive losses of the fatty acid substituent at sn-2 and the polar head group readily gives the structural information of the radyl group at sn-1, resulting in structural differentiation among the 1-O-alk-1'-enyl-2-acyl-, 1-O-alkyl-2-acyl, and diacyl-glycerolphospholipid molecules. The distinction between a 1-O-alk-1'-enyl-2-acyl- and a 1-O-alkyl-2-acyl-GPL is based on the findings that the MS(3) (or MS(4)) spectrum of the [M - H - R(2)CO(2)H - polar head group](-) ion from the former compound is dominated by the alkenoxide anion that represents the radyl moiety at sn-1, while the spectrum from the latter compound is dominated by the ion at m/z 135 arising from further loss of the 1-O-alkyl group as an alcohol. Another important notion is that the optimal collision energy required for acquiring the former spectrum is significantly lower than that required for obtaining the latter spectrum. Using the approaches, we are able to reveal the structures of several isobaric isomers in GPL mixtures of biological origin. Because the [M - H](-) ions are readily formed by various GPL classes (except glycerophosphocholine) in the negative-ion mode, these mass spectrometric approaches should have broad application in the structural identification of GPLs.     

A study of isomeric diglycosyl flavonoids by SORI CID of fourier transform ion cyclotron mass spectrometry in negative ion mode

High-resolution Sustained off resonance irradiation (SORI) CID was employed to distinguish four pairs of isomeric diglycosyl flavonoids in the negative mode using the electrospray ionization Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (ESI FTICR MS). All of these isomers can be distinguished via MS/MS data. For these diglycosyl flavones and flavanones, the deprotonated alpha1-->6 linkage diglycosyl flavonoids produce fewer fragments than the alpha1-->2 linkage type compounds and the Retro-Diels-Alder (RDA) reaction in MS/MS only takes place when the aglycone is a flavanone and glycosylated with an alpha1-->2 intersaccharide linkage disaccharide. The deprotonation sites after collisional activation are discussed according to the high mass accuracy and high-resolution data of tandem spectrometry. Some of these high-resolution SORI CID product ions from alpha1-->2 linkage diglycosyl flavonoids involve multibond cleavages; the possible mechanism is discussed based on the computer modeling using Gaussian 03 program package at the B3LYP/6-31G level of theory. Unambiguous elementary composition data provides fragmentation information that has not been reported previously.     

Identification and characterization of isomeric N-glycans of human alfa-acid-glycoprotein by stable isotope labelling and ZIC-HILIC-MS in combination with exoglycosidase digestion

In this study, a ZIC-HILIC-MS methodology for the analysis of N-glycan isomers was optimized to obtain greater detection sensitivity and thus identify more glycan structures in hAGP. In a second step, this method was combined with glycan reductive isotope labelling (GRIL) through [¹²C₆]/[¹³C₆]-aniline and exoglycosidase digestion to characterize the different glycan isomers. The GRIL method allows the peak areas resulting from two different labelled samples to be compared, since neither retention time shifts nor variations in the ionization of glycans between these samples are obtained. First, sialic acid linkage assignations were performed for most hAGP glycan isomers with α2-3 sialidase digestion. Bi-, tri- and tetraantennary glycan isomers with different terminal sialic acid linkages to galactose (α2-3 or α2-6) were assigned, and the potential of this technique for the structural characterization of isobaric isomers was therefore demonstrated. Furthermore, fucose linkage isomers of hAGP glycans were also characterized using this isotope-labelling approach in combination with α1-3,4 fucosidase and β1-4 galactosidase digestion. α1-3 antennary fucoses and α1-6 core fucosylation were detected in hAGP fucosylated glycans. These established methodologies can be extremely useful for patho-glycomic studies to characterize glycoproteins of biomedical interest and find novel glycan isomers that could be used as biomarkers in cancer research.     

Differentiating structural isomers of sialylated glycans by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight/time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry

Using model acidic glycans, we demonstrate the benefits of permethylation for matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight/time-of-flight (MALDI/TOF-TOF) tandem mass spectrometry. With both the linear and branched structures, extensive cross-ring fragmentation product ions were generated, yielding valuable information on sugar linkages. Elimination of the negative charges commonly associated with sialylated structures through permethylation allowed their structural analysis in the positive ion mode. Extensive A- and X-type ions were observed for the linear structures, and slightly weaker signals for the branched sialylated structures. The diagnostic cross-ring fragments, permitting a distinction between alpha2-3 and alpha2-6 linkages of the sialic acid residues, were seen in abundance. Importantly, the cross-ring fragmentation with the branched structures provides adequate information to assign sialic acid residues, with a specific linkage, to a particular antenna.     

Analysis of neutral isomeric low molecular weight carbohydrates using ferrocenyl boronate derivatization and tandem electrospray mass spectrometry

A new analytical technique for small carbohydrates utilizing the cyclic ferrocenyl boronic esters (FcBors) of several neutral mono- and disaccharides is demonstrated. Distinction between the diastereomers of mono- and disaccharides is obtained. Analysis is by tandem electrospray-mass spectrometry (ES-MS) using a modified ion-source that promotes the preformation of ions. Selection of the molecular ion produced during single-electron oxidation of the ferrocene moiety of a specific population of saccharide isomers permits a variety of collisionally induced dissociation (CID) experiments. The resultant MS2/MS3 spectra reflect the ensemble of possible cyclic esters in equilibrium. An array of stable cross pyranose ring fragment ions representing sequential carbon loss as 30 u is observed. Consequently, the system provides an information-rich set of MSn spectra containing large amounts of structural information. Identification of D-glucose (D-Glc), its two commonly found epimers (D-mannose and D-galactose), and the two major L-diastereomers of 6-dideoxymonosaccharides, L-fucose (L-Fuc) and L-rhamnose (L-Rhm), are demonstrated. Selected pairs of disaccharides can be distinguished in terms of their anomeric linkage by reference to their MS3 spectra.     

Mass spectrometry of proton adducts of fucosylated N-glycans: fucose transfer between antennae gives rise to misleading fragments

Fragmentation behavior of fucosylated N-glycans in both protonated and sodiated form was studied by low-energy collision-induced dissociation with an ion trap mass spectrometer as well as by laser-induced dissociation with matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization tandem time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF/TOF-MS). Diantennary, core-(alpha1-6)-fucosylated N-glycans with Lewis X (Gal(beta1-4)[Fuc(alpha1-3)]GlcNAcbeta1-) and/or fucosylated LacdiNAc antennae (GalNAc(beta1-4)[Fuc(alpha1-3)]GlcNAcbeta1-) were obtained from the human parasite Schistosoma mansoni and used as model substances, after labeling with 2-aminobenzamide, or as native reducing glycans. While fragment spectra of sodiated as well as protonated species obtained in both mass spectrometers resulted in B- and Y-type ions, fragmentation of proton adducts additionally gave rise to various fragment ions which had acquired fucose residues from other parts of the molecule. In particular, fucose was transferred efficiently to the Lewis X antennae suggesting the occurrence of difucosylated antennae, which could erroneously be interpreted as Lewis Y epitopes. By studying two additional model substances, this fucose gain was shown to occur by transfer of fucose between the antennae, but not by transfer of a core-(alpha1-6)-fucose. Despite the drastically different lifetimes of the ions, protonated species analyzed on the ion trap (millisecond range) and by MALDI-TOF/TOF-MS (microsecond range) showed similar rearrangement patterns, suggesting that the fucose mobility goes hand in hand with decomposition. Notably, permethylation of the model N-glycans seemed to completely preclude fucose migration. This study indicates that caution should be applied with the interpretation of tandem mass spectrometric (MS/MS) data of protonated glycoconjugates, including glycopeptides, because of the potential occurrence of fucose rearrangements.     

Analysis of neutral oligosaccharides for structural characterization by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization quadrupole ion trap time-of-flight mass spectrometry

We have acquired multi-stage mass spectra (MSn) of four branched N-glycans derived from human serum IgG by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization quadrupole ion trap time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-QIT-TOF-MS) in order to demonstrate high sensitivity structural analysis. [M+H]+ and [M+Na]+ ions were detected in the positive mode. The detection limit of [M+Na]+ in MS/MS and MS3 measurements for structural analysis was found to be 100 fmol, better than that for [M+H]+. The [M+H]+ ions subsequently fragmented to produce predominantly a Y series of fragments, whereas [M+Na]+ ions fragmented to give a complex mixture of B and Y ions together with some cross-ring fragments. Three features of MALDI-QIT-CID fragmentation of [M+Na]+ were cleared by the analysis of MS/MS, MS3 and MS4 spectra: (1) the fragment ions resulting from the breaking of a bond are more easily generated than that from multi-bond dissociation; (2) the trimannosyl-chitobiose core is either hardly dissociated, easily ionized or it is easy to break a bond between N-acetylglucosamine and mannose; (3) the fragmentation by loss of only galactose from the non-reducing terminus is not observed. We could determine the existence ratios of candidates for each fragment ion in the MS/MS spectrum of [M+Na]+ by considering these features. These results indicate that MSn analysis of [M+Na]+ ions is more useful for the analysis of complicated oligosaccharide structures than MS/MS analysis of [M+H]+, owing to the higher sensitivity and enhanced structural information. Furthermore, two kinds of glycans, with differing branch structures, could be distinguished by comparing the relative fragment ion abundances in the MS3 spectrum of [M+Na]+. These analyses demonstrate that the MSn technology incorporated in MALDI-QIT-TOF-MS can facilitate the elucidation of structure of complex branched oligosaccharides.     

Structural characterization of phosphatidyl-<Emphasis Type="Italic">myo</Emphasis>-inositol mannosides from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Mycobacterium bovis</Emphasis> bacillus calmette guérin by multiple-stage quadrupole ion-trap mass spectrometry with electrospray ionization. I. PIMs and lyso-PIMs

We described a multiple-stage ion-trap mass spectrometric approach to characterize the structures of phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidyl-myoinositol mannosides (PIMs) in a complex mixture isolated from Mycobacterium bovis Bacillus Calmette Guérin. The positions of the fatty acyl substituents of PIMs at the glycerol backbone can be easily assigned, based on the findings that the ions arising from losses of the fatty acid substituent at sn-2 as molecules of acid and of ketene, respectively (that is, the [M - H - R(2)CO(2)H](-) and [M - H - R(2)CHCO](-) ions), are respectively more abundant than the ions arising from the analogous losses at sn-1 (that is, the [M - H - R(1)CO(2)H](-) and [M - H - R(1)CHCO](-) ions) in the MS(2) product-ion spectra of the [M - H](-) ions desorbed by electrospray ionization (ESI). Further dissociation of the [M - H - R(2)CO(2)H](-) and [M - H - R(1)CO(2)H](-) ions gives rise to a pair of unique ions corresponding to losses of 74 and 56 Da (that is, [M - H - R(x)CO(2)H - 56](-) and [M - H - R(x)CO(2)H - 74](-) ions, x = 1, 2), respectively, probably arising from various losses of the glycerol. The profile of the ion-pair in the MS(3) spectrum of the [M - H - R(2)CO(2)H](-) ion is readily distinguishable from that in the MS(3) spectrum of the [M - H - R(1)CO(2)H](-) ion and thus the assignment of the fatty acid substituents at the glycerol backbone can be confirmed. The product-ion spectra of the [M - H](-) ions from 2-lyso-PIM and from 1-lyso-PIM are discernible and both spectra contain a unique ion that arises from primary loss of the fatty acid substituent at the glycerol backbone, followed by loss of a bicyclic glycerophosphate ester moiety of 136 Da. The combined structural information from the MS(2) and MS(3) product-ion spectra permit the complex structures of PIMs that consist of various isomers to be unveiled in detail.