Reliable phenotyping of alpha-1-antitrypsin by hybrid isoelectric focusing in an ultranarrow immobilized pH gradient.

Genetically determined phenotypes of the highly polymorphic human alpha 1-antitrypsin were examined by hybrid isoelectric focusing in a narrow immobilized pH gradient. The chosen pH range from 4.45 to 4.75 was useful for identification and classification of the common PI M subtypes and a number of PI variants in the microheterogeneous regions of m6, m7, and m8. A high degree of resolution and an improved sharpness of PI bands was achieved with this excellent technique. It allowed the distinction of a new PI M variant, which has been designated M8, or Mingolstadt, according to the PI nomenclature. The pI difference of this mutant to the slightly cathodically located subtype M3 is approximately 0.001 pH unit. In addition, some common as well as rare phenotypes are presented.     

基于固定化pH梯度整体材料的芯片自由流等电聚焦电泳模式的构建

芯片自由流电泳对于来源稀少的重要生物样品的连续预分级和微制备具有重要的意义。本文在自由流芯片的微分离腔内,通过原位光引发聚合反应制备了聚丙烯酰胺整体材料,并进行了pH梯度的固定化,从而构建了基于固定化pH梯度整体(M-IPG)材料的芯片自由流等电聚焦模式(μFF-IEF)。利用该新型分离模式,实现了异硫氰酸荧光素(FITC)标记的最小等电点相差0.33的甘氨酸、脯氨酸和赖氨酸混合物的分离,且分离结果优于传统的μFF-IEF。实验结果表明,通过发展基于M-IPG材料的μFF-IEF模式,不仅可以避免在缓冲溶液中添加两性电解质对后续采用其他模式分离和质谱鉴定的干扰,而且可以获得较高的分离和富集能力,有望在微量样品的连续分离和制备方面发挥重要作用。     

Proteome analysis using isoelectric focusing in immobilized pH gradient gels followed by mass spectrometry

Over the past several years, a large effort has been focused on improvements of two-dimensional (2-D) gel electrophoresis-based proteomics technology, and on development of novel approaches for proteome analysis. Here, we describe the application of an alternative strategy for the analysis of complex proteomes. The strategy combines isoelectric focusing in immobilized pH gradient strips (in-gel IEF), mass spectrometry (MS), and bioinformatics. A protein mixture is separated by in-gel IEF, and the entire strip is cut into a set of gel sections. Proteins in each gel section are digested with trypsin, and the tryptic peptides are subjected to liquid chromatography-nanoelectrospray-quadrupole ion-trap tandem mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS/MS). The LC-ESI-MS/MS data are used to identify the proteins through searches of a protein sequence database. Using this in-gel IEF-LC-MS/MS strategy, we have identified 127 proteins from a human pituitary. This study demonstrates the potential of the in-gel IEF-LC-MS/MS approach for analyses of complex mammalian proteomes.     

Improved method for identification of proteins using two-dimensional electrophoresis with immobilized pH gradient isoelectric focusing.

Recent advances in protein sequence analysis now permit the determination of partial N-terminal and internal primary structure from low picomole quantities of protein. The major remaining hurdles to sequence analysis of small amounts of protein are the identification, isolation, and handling of microgram and submicrogram quantities of protein. The technique of two-dimensional electrophoresis using immobilized pH gradient isoelectric focusing circumvents many of these problems. However, poor correlation between the first and second dimension have prevented use of this technique for the identification of some proteins which can only be assayed prior to the denaturing conditions used in the second dimensional sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis procedure. An improved method is presented which allows correlation of the native biological activity (first dimension) to a silver stained protein (second dimension) with a high degree of confidence.     

Effect of salt on the performance of immobilized pH gradient isoelectric focusing gels

The effect of salt and buffer ions in the sample or in an immobilized pH gradient (IPG) on sample entry into the gel and on the final focused pattern are presented. During the initial phase of electrofocusing, ions present in the gel, either as counter ions to the immobilized charge groups of the IPG gel or added to the gel matrix during the rehydration process, are transported toward the electrodes. For ions present at a concentration exceeding approximately 1 mM the transport can be followed by the refractile line marking the trailing edge of an ion-containing zone. Gradual sample entry may be achieved by applying the sample at a site (near the anode or cathode) opposite to that from which the sharpest refractile line, marking the ion present in the highest concentration, approaches the sample. Additionally, lateral band spreading of the sample is avoided. Thus, sample applied at the cathode for IPG gels rehydrated with 1-2 mM Tris base, or at the anode for gels rehydrated with 1-2 mM acetic acid or sodium acetate, enters the gel matrix gradually without lateral band spreading. In contrast, sample applied at the anode, for Tris-containing gels, or at the cathode, for acetate-containing gels, enters rapidly in a sharp zone when the refractile line reaches the sample zone. This results in a high local protein concentration in the zone immediately behind the boundary with lateral band spreading.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Preparation of a capillary isoelectric focusing column with monolithic immobilized pH gradient and its application on protein separation based on an online capillary isoelectric focusing platform

In the presence of methanol and n‐decanol as porogens, a partially filled capillary monolithic column was prepared by in situ reaction of glycidyl methacrylate and poly (ethylene glycol) diacrylate. Then, Pharmalyte 3–10 was immobilized on this column in order to obtain a capillary isoelectric focusing (cIEF) column with monolithic immobilized pH gradient (M‐IPG). In addition, an online self‐built platform for protein separation was established on account of the introduction of a cross‐shaped unit and two short‐off valves. In this platform, a cross‐shaped unit was not only used to join the M‐IPG column and a six‐way injection valve (1.5 μL sample loop), but also to supply a volume pool of anode buffer so that the process of injection, focusing and mobilization of samples could be sequentially performed. The short‐off valve in the tee unit or cross‐shaped unit could be used to control the direction of the fluid flow. Using this online cIEF platform and under the optimized conditions, 7‐proteins mixture could be separated and a good linear correlation between pI values and migration times was obtained by the M‐IPG column. Meanwhile, based on the online cIEF platform, human serum proteins and a mixture of Hb A and Hb A_1c have been successfully resolved with the newly developed M‐IPG column.     

固化pH梯度毛细管等电聚焦整体柱的制备及在蛋白质等电点分析中的应用

通过聚合物原位聚合反应，制备了部分填充的毛细管整体柱。pH 3~10的载体两性电解质被固化在该毛细管整体柱上。在引入八通进样阀、三通阀和四通连接单元的基础上，构建了适用于固化pH梯度毛细管等电聚焦整体柱（M-IPG）的平台。在蛋白质药物测定过程中，用M-IPG柱和羟丙基纤维素（HPC）涂层毛细管柱同时对曲托珠单抗和依那西谱的等电点进行了测定。结果表明，两种等电聚焦柱都能够同时分离混合蛋白质样品并测定蛋白质类药物中单抗和融合蛋白质的等电点（pI），M-IPG柱所测的pI值与HPC涂层毛细管柱测定的结果基本一致，表明了该柱在进一步构建多维分离平台进行蛋白质组学研究方面的潜力。     

Fast preparation of monolithic immobilized pH gradient column by photopolymerization and photografting techniques for isoelectric focusing separation of proteins

A new method was developed to prepare monolithic immobilized pH gradient (M-IPG) columns in UV-transparent fused-silica capillaries by the 5-min photopolymerization of acrylamide and N,N'-methylenebisacrylamide, followed by the 20-min photografting of the focused ampholine-derived glycidylmethacrylate monomer on the monolithic matrix, by which the preparation time was reduced, and the stability of the formed pH gradient was improved, compared with our previous methods. Using the prepared M-IPG column, the baseline separation of proteins was achieved according to their pIs. Without carrier ampholytes added in the running buffer, the separated components could be detected with high sensitivity by UV at low wavelength.     

Synthesis of thiomorpholino buffers for isoelectric focusing in immobilized pH gradients

The two commercially available Immobilines having a pK of 6.2 (2-morpholino ethyl acrylamide) and 7.0 (3-morpholinopropylacrylamide) have been modified and two new buffers have been synthesized: 2-thiomorpholinoethylacrylamide, pK 6.6, and 3-thiomorpholinopropyl acrylamide, pK 7.4. The replacement of an oxygen with a sulfur atom in the morpholino ring is thus seen to shift the pK values of these two bases by +0.4 pH units. In formulations in which the two new bases replaced the standard morpholino derivatives, identical pH profiles and protein patterns were obtained. The reason for this work was to try to close the gap between the pK 7.0 and 8.5 species and to provide the users of immobilized pH gradients with more buffers in the neutral pH region. The two new thiomorpholino derivatives are an important step in this direction.     

Immobilized pH gradient isoelectric focusing of cerebrospinal fluid proteins

Isoelectric focusing in immobilized pH gradients, supplemented with 0.5% w/v carrier ampholytes was applied for studies of native proteins, especially immunoglobulin G, in cerebrospinal fluid and serum. All 72 paired samples were run on pH 4-10 gels; 25 of them were also examined in pH 7-10 gels. Silver staining and nitrocellulose blotting with amplified immunoperoxidase detection of immunoglobulin G were used for protein visualization. Intrathecally produced immunoglobulin G was resolved into sharply focused, straight and easily identifiable fractions. The pH gradients were stable and the inter-gel reproducibilities of individual immunoglobulin G patterns were good.     

Analysis of recombinant proteins by isoelectric focusing in immobilized pH gradients.

Isoelectric focusing in immobilized pH gradients (IEF-IPG) was used to analyze three different recombinant proteins. Recombinant leech hirudin (65 amino acids, three disulfide bonds) expressed in Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a secreted protein and purified by anion-exchange and reversed-phase chromatography proved to be homogeneous with regard to its isoelectric point (pI). In addition, the theoretical pI, calculated on the basis of the primary structure, corresponded precisely to the measured pI of 4.30. IEF-IPG was further employed to follow the stability of recombinant hirudin at pH 9, indicating that deamidation occurred under these conditions. A variant of recombinant human alpha 1-antitrypsin (AAT) (389 amino acids, one cysteine residue) expressed in Escherichia coli and purified by anion-exchange, metal chelate and hydrophobic-interaction chromatography appeared to be homogeneous by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis under reducing and denaturing conditions as well as by various high performance liquid chromatography methods. However, some heterogeneity was detected by IEF-IPG between pH 5-6. The measured pI values of 5.43-5.58 were slightly lower than the calculated pI based on the primary structure (5.72). This indicated deamidations of Asn or Gln residues. A recombinant Schistosoma mansoni parasite antigen, p28 (210 amino acids, one cysteine residue) obtained after intracellular expression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and affinity purification on glutathione agarose was analyzed by IEF-IPG in a pH 7.3-8.3 gradient. It appeared to be heterogeneous with regard to its pI, with the major component having a pI of 7.81 compared to the calculated value of 7.17.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Analysis of human apolipoproteins C by isoelectric focusing in immobilized pH gradients

Apolipoproteins C are involved in many ways in the metabolism of plasma lipoproteins. Apolipoproteins C from the delipidated VLDL of 35 controls and 165 normo- and hyperlipoproteinemic patients were analyzed by isoelectric focusing on an immobilized pH gradient, pH 4.0-5.0, with 7 M urea, which raised the apparent pH range to 4.8-5.7. This method is an improvement over conventional isoelectric focusing with carrier ampholytes with regard to both resolution and reproducibility. Due to the high resolution (0.1 pH units per cm) additional apolipoprotein C-III bands: C-III0 A1, C-III0 A2, C-III1 C and C-III2 C (the designations A, anodic, and C, cathodic, refer to direction of migration on IEF in relation to the main band) are described for the first time. The possible artifactual nature of these protein bands could be excluded. Cleavage with neuraminidase and peptidases, immunological detection and/or two-dimensional electrophoresis were used to obtain more information. The additional bands seem, in part, to be hydrolysis products of carboxypeptidase A (C-III1 C, C-III2 C). The appearance of C-III1 C and C-III2C was dependent upon the serum triglyceride concentration. The percent distribution of C apolipoproteins in very low density lipoproteins (VLDL) from control serum agreed with previously published data. Apolipoproteins C can also be focused in immobilized pH gradients from VLDL and serum without delipidation.     

Microfabrication of a tapered channel for isoelectric focusing with thermally generated pH gradient

A simple microfabrication technique for the preparation of a tapered microchannel for thermally generated pH gradient isoelectric focusing (IEF) has been demonstrated. The tapered channel was cut into a plastic sheet (thickness was 120 microm), and the channel was closed by sandwiching the plastic sheet between two glass microscope slides. The length of the microchannel was 5 cm. The width of the separation channel was 0.4 mm at the narrow end and 4 mm at the wide end. The channel was coated with polyacrylamide to prevent electroosmotic flow (EOF) during focusing. Two electrolyte vials were mounted on top of each end of the channel with the wide end of the channel connected to the cathodic vial and the narrow to the anodic vial. The feasibility of the thermally generated pH gradient in a tapered channel was demonstrated. Important parameters that determined the feasibility of using a thermally generated pH gradient in a tapered channel were analyzed. Parameters to be optimized were control of EOF and hydrodynamic flow, selection of power supply mode and prevention of local overheating and air bubble formation. Tris-HCl buffer, which has a high pK(a) dependence with temperature, was used both to dissolve proteins and as the electrolyte. The thermally generated pH gradient separation of proteins was tested by focusing dog, cat and human hemoglobins with a whole column detection capillary IEF (CIEF) system.     

Electrophoretically silent hemoglobin mutants as revealed by isoelectric focusing in immobilized pH gradients

The applications of isoelectric focusing in immobilized pH gradients to the analysis of (i) human hemoglobin mutants, (ii) animal hemoglobin mutants (from cattle, sheep, dog and mouse), and (iii) tryptic digests of alpha and beta chains, are discussed and evaluated. Immobilized pH gradients appear to be an excellent tool for screening of genetic polymorphism and for detecting "silent mutants", i.e. those substitutions involving amino acids with nonionizable side chains. At present, not even capillary zone electrophoresis, claimed to have a resolving power equivalent to 1 million theoretical plates, has shown a resolution capability comparable to that of immobilized pH gradients, at least in the field of protein separation.     

Poly(glycidyl methacrylate-divinylbenzene) based immobilized pH gradient capillary isoelectric focusing coupling with MALDI mass spectrometry for enhanced neuropeptide analysis

Herein, we report an immobilized pH gradient (IPG) capillary isoelectric focusing-matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (CIEF-MALDI MS) platform designed for the separation of complex neuropeptides. This platform features a poly(glycidyl methacrylate-divinylbenzene) (GMA-DVB)-based monolithic column for CIEF separation. Different from regular CIEF, carrier ampholytes are preimmobilized on the monolithic surface instead of being added to the sample. An off-line coupling of IPG-CIEF to MALDI MS has been established. Comparison with regular CIEF and optimizations are performed with bovine serum albumin tryptic peptides and extracted neuropeptide mixtures from crustacean Callinectes sapidus. It has been demonstrated that the separation of complex peptide mixtures in neutral and basic pH ranges can be achieved in less than 10 min with comparable separation efficiency with regular CIEF, while the MS signal is significantly enhanced when employing IPG-CIEF. Enhanced neuropeptide detection is also observed after coupling IPG-CIEF with MALDI MS.     

Integration of capillary isoelectric focusing with monolithic immobilized pH gradient,immobilized trypsin microreactor and capillary zone electrophoresis for on‐line protein analysis

An integrated platform consisting of protein separation by CIEF with monolithic immobilized pH gradient (M‐IPG), on‐line digestion by trypsin‐based immobilized enzyme microreactor (trypsin‐IMER), and peptide separation by CZE was established. In such a platform, a tee unit was used not only to connect M‐IPG CIEF column and trypsin‐IMER, but also to supply adjustment buffer to improve the compatibility of protein separation and digestion. Another interface was made by a Teflon tube with a nick to couple IMER and CZE via a short capillary, which was immerged in a centrifuge tube filled with 20 mmol/L glutamic acid, to exchange protein digests buffer and keep electric contact for peptide separation. By such a platform, under the optimal conditions, a mixture of ribonuclease A, myoglobin and BSA was separated into 12 fractions by M‐IPG CIEF, followed by on‐line digestion by trypsin‐IMER and peptide separation by CZE. Many peaks of tryptic peptides, corresponding to different proteins, were observed with high UV signals, indicating the excellent performance of such an integrated system. We hope that the CE‐based on‐line platform developed herein would provide another powerful alternative for an integrated analysis of proteins.     

Elimination of sample diffusion and lateral band spreading in isoelectric focusing employing ready-made immobilized pH gradient gels.

A simple procedure for the elimination of lateral sample as well as band spreading in precast, ready-made immobilized pH gradient gels is described. Round or rectangular holes are punched in the dry polyacrylamide gels prior to rehydration. The generated wells proved suitable for application of samples containing surfactants such as Nonidet P-40 or 3-[(3-cholamidopropyl) dimethylammonio]-1- propane-sulfonate (CHAPS). Lateral band spreading and precipitation of samples containing up to 9.5 M urea could be completely eliminated by this method.     

Apolipoprotein E phenotyping by isoelectric focusing in immobilized pH gradients and silver staining.

A simple and high resolution procedure of apoprotein E (apo E) phenotyping by isoelectric focusing with immobilized pH gradients and silver staining is described. This method needs delipidated very low density lipoproteins (isolated from 1 mL of serum) but obviates immunoblotting as well as neuraminidase treatment in routine applications because the sialylated forms are clearly separated. Immunoblotting (with polyclonal and monoclonal anti-apo E antiserum), cysteamine and neuraminidase treatment, and pI markers allowed the localization of three main alleles, xi 2, xi 3, xi 4 and the detection of variants or rare alleles (6/450 determinations). The serum amyloid A (SAA) apolipoproteins (SAA1,SAA2) could be characterized unequivocally (especially with E3 and E4). Silver staining proved more sensitive than Coomassie Brilliant Blue and needs only 5 micrograms of protein in the sample. The results of 403 normo-or hyperlipidemic patients are shown. In the group of 191 normolipidemic patients (cholesterol less than 6.40 mmol/L triglycerides less than 2 mmol/L), the relative frequency of the xi 3 allele (0.83) is higher than in other reports on Caucasians (about 0.77) whereas the xi 4 allele is lower. As previously described, we find a high frequency of the 4/3 phenotype in hypercholesterolemia and 3/2 in hypertriglyceridemia. The high frequency of the E2/E2 phenotype, usually associated with hyperlipidemia, and variants in complex hypertriglyceridemia makes the apo E phenotyping necessary in many cases of dyslipidemias.     

Shifts of isoelectric points between cellular and secreted antibodies as revealed by isoelectric focusing and immobilized pH gradients

Charge microheterogeneity of monoclonal antibodies, as revealed by isoelectric focusing in carrier ampholytes, has been known for a long time. Here we demonstrate, in the case of monoclonals against the gp-41 of the HIV-1 virus, that this heterogeneity is already present within the cell sap of hybridoma cells during antibody synthesis. When the monoclonals are secreted extracellularly, the same isoelectric point (pI) spectrum is maintained, but there is marked redistribution of the relative isoform abundance towards the lower pI components. This suggests in vivo processing of such forms, possibly via glycosylation or deamidation. The secreted antibodies are also analyzed by immobilized pH gradients (IPG), where they demonstrate an even more extensive heterogeneity, due to the marked increment in resolving power. Single bands are purified by preparative IPGs in a multicompartment electrolyzer and are shown to be stable with time. Thus, artefactual heterogeneity produced by the focusing technique is completely excluded and cellular processing is clearly established.