Screening of antagonists based on induced dissociation of a calmodulin-melittin interaction entrapped in a sol-gel derived matrix

Sol-gel derived materials offer a unique advantage for the development of sensing and screening platforms in that they allow for the entrapment of multiple species within a confined space. In this work, we show that it is possible to entrap an intact protein-peptide interaction, consisting of bovine calmodulin (bCaM) and melittin, into a sol-gel derived silicate material. Fluorescence emission data demonstrate that the entrapped complex behaves similarly to the complex in solution, and can undergo reversible dissociation upon introduction of the denaturant guanidine hydrochloride. Screening of antagonists of the bCaM-melittin complex was accomplished based on induced dissociation of the entrapped complex, which was followed by measuring the loss of sensitization of Tb(III) luminescence originating from energy transfer from the Trp of melittin to Tb(III) bound in the loops of bCaM. This study shows that entrapped protein-peptide complexes can be used as targets for drug screening or for fluorescence-based biosensing.     

Bound water measurements for aqueous protein solutions and food gels

The role of aqueous media in the stabilization of globular proteins and formation of gels was studied by absorption millimeter spectroscopy. This method allowed to measure bound water, the fraction of water which had decreased rotational mobility owing to the presence of solute. Hydration data for globular proteins were compared with data obtained previously for low-weight molecules and groups. It was found that rotational mobility of water molecules in the hydration shells of various kinds of solutes (groups) decreased in the following order: water structure breaking compounds>polar groups>unfolded proteins>globular proteins>non-polar groups. Time courses of the storage modulus were determined for the chemical acidification by glucono-δ-lactone (GDL) of milk samples prepared from skimmed milk powder (SMP). Gelation of unheated milk was a monotonous process that started at pH 4.9. Heat-treated milk from SMP (16 and 14 g per 100 ml) acidified by GDL (3 g per 100 ml) at 43 °C gave non-monotonous kinetics of gelation with two phases corresponding to the mechanisms induced by denatured whey proteins at pH>5 and by casein–casein interactions at pH 4.8–4.9. For heat-treated milk, measurement of bound water gave two stages of decrease in water mobility. Additional hydration of SMP during acidification gave 0.15–0.2 g and 0.8 g bound H₂O per gram of SMP for unheated and heat-treated milk, respectively.     

Analytical procedures for quantification of peptides in pharmaceutical research by liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry

Peptide quantification by liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC–MS) combines the high resolving power of reversed-phase (RP) chromatography with the excellent selectivity and sensitivity of mass spectrometric detection. On the basis of comprehensive practical experience in the analysis of small molecules, pharmaceutical research is developing technologies for analysis of a growing number of peptidic drug candidates. This article is a detailed review of procedures based on LC–MS techniques for quantitative determination of peptides. With the focus on pharmaceutical applications several technologies for sample preparation, various aspects of peptide chromatography, important characteristics of ESI–MS, selectivity of MS-detection modes, the large variability of internal standards, and modern instrumentation are discussed. The demand for reliable, robust, sensitive, and accurate methods is discussed using numerous examples from the literature, complemented by experiments and results from our laboratory.     

Background-free,fast protein staining in sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel using counterion dyes,zincon and ethyl violet

A background-free, fast protein staining method in polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis using an acidic dye, zincon (ZC) and a basic dye, ethyl violet (EV) is described. It is based on the counterion dye staining technique that employs two oppositely charged dyes to form an ion-pair complex in staining solution. The selective binding of free dye molecules to proteins in acidic solution produces bluish violet-colored bands. It is a rapid and end-point staining procedure, involving only fixing and staining steps that are completed in 1-1.5 h. The detection limit of this method is 8-15 ng of protein that is comparable to the sensitivity of the colloidal Coomassie Brilliant Blue G (CBBG) stain. Due to its sensitivity and speed, this stain may be more practical than any other dye-based stains for routine laboratory purposes.     

牛血清白蛋白在NVP/HEMA无规共聚物水凝胶上的吸附研究

合成了不同含水量的N-乙烯吡咯烷酮(NVP)／甲基丙烯酸-β-羟乙酯(HEMA)共聚物水凝胶．研究了温度、pH值，蛋白质初浓度及离子强度等因素对牛血清白蛋白吸附性能的影响．采用紫外分光光度法测定BSA的吸附量．结果表明，蛋白质初浓度越高．温度越高，离子强度越大；蛋白质内部更多的疏水性氧基酸残基暴露于外部．吸附量增加：在等电点pH=4．7附近蛋白质沉积量最大．     

Cystine and cysteine analysis as the same phenylthiocarbamyl derivatives by HPLC in protein hydrolyzates

Summary A new approach is described, and a novel explanation presented, for the high performance liquid chromatographic analysis of cystine and cysteine as their phenylthiocarbamyl derivatives. PTC cystine and cysteine have been eluted with the same retention times and molar responses, most probably due to electrophilic attack of phenylisothiocyanate on cystine resulting in the scission of the disulfide bond yielding two moles of cysteine. Further, total PTC cystine and cysteine have been measured both in model solutions and in standard protein hydrolyzates (lysozyme, bovine albumin, ribonuclease) with the same linearity as the other ineteen amino acids. The reproducibility of the measurements, at the 250–750 pmole level, proved to be 4.1% (Relative Standard Deviation %) or less.     

球状蛋白质分子中氨基酸紧密接触对性质的研究

采用CSU软件 (Contactsofstructuralunits) ,对 61种球状蛋白质分子中氨基酸紧密接触对 (Residue residuecontact)进行了研究 .重点研究了不同氨基酸在形成远程紧密接触对 (Long rangecontact)和近程紧密接触对 (Short rangecontact)时的不同能力 .发现氨基酸Leu,Val,Ile,Met,Phe,Tyr,Cys,Trp(疏性氨基酸 ,H)比较容易形成远程紧密接触对 ,氨基酸Glu,Gln ,Asp ,Asn,Lys,Ser,Arg,Pro(亲水氨基酸 ,P)比较难形成远程紧密接触对 ,而氨基酸Ala,Gly,Thr,His(中性氨基酸 ,N)在形成远程紧密接触对时能力一般 .它们平均每个氨基酸可形成 6 0 3 ,3 64和 4 43个远程紧密接触对 .同时它们在形成近程紧密接触对时能力非常接近 ,平均每个氨基酸可形成的近程紧密接触对数目在 2 3 4～ 2 85变化 ,差别非常小 .亲水氨基酸 (P) ,中性氨基酸 (N)和疏水性氨基酸 (H)在蛋白质分子结构稳定性上起着不同的作用     

Capillary isoelectric focusing-mass spectrometry for shotgun approach in proteomics

We report on capillary isoelectric focusing-mass spectrometry (CIEF-MS) of complex peptide mixtures in the absence of carrier ampholytes. Furthermore, the use of low concentrations of carrier ampholytes as mere spacers is investigated. Carrier ampholytes are complex mixtures of amphoteric compounds with high buffering capacity. Since all peptides are amphoteric compounds by themselves, the use of carrier ampholytes may be superfluous to establish a stable pH gradient in CIEF analysis of protein digests. Our research showed that when carrier ampholytes are omitted, the analyte ions are not focused at their isoelectric point. The analytes are charged, leading to electrophoretic mobility uncharacteristic for CIEF. The method was tested for a five-protein-mixture at 0.02 mg/mL per protein and 0.05 mg/mL per protein. At the lower concentration, the analytes were stacked during the focusing process in only a limited length of the capillary. Therefore, the higher concentration led to better separation efficiency. It was found that at low concentration (0.20%) the carrier ampholytes could work as spacers. Though it led to sensitivity losses of 15-45%, this was compensated by the higher separation efficiencies seen. The method was evaluated with an eight-protein-mixture, of which all could be identified after performing MS/MS.     

Determination of clindamycin in animal plasma by high-performance liquid chromatography combined with electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

A method for the quantification of clindamycin in animal plasma using high-performance liquid chromatography combined with electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (LC/ESI-MS/MS) is presented. Lincomycin is used as the internal standard. The sample preparation includes a simple deproteinization step with trichloroacetic acid. Chromatographic separation is achieved on an RP-18 Hypersil column using gradient elution with 0.01 M ammonium acetate and acetonitrile as mobile phase. Good linearity was observed in the range 0-10 microg ml(-1). The limit of quantification of the method is 50 ng ml(-1) and the limit of detection is 1.3 ng ml(-1). The method was shown out to be of use for pharmacokinetic studies of clindamycin formulations in dogs.