Analysis of pyridylaminated oligosaccharides using liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry with a monolithic capillary column

We examined the utility of a monolithic capillary column in the analysis of pyridylaminated oligosaccharides. Fluorescence detection and mass spectrometry were used to monitor a series of oligosaccharides. Although the total-ion chromatogram appeared similar to that obtained with fluorescence detection, the sensitivity of this technique was limited, especially in the case of smaller oligosaccharides. This limitation was overcome by applying selected ion current monitoring. Further, the capillary column also exhibited good reproducibility. We showed that the retention times obtained by using the monolithic capillary column could be converted into the standard data to enable comparison of the experimental data with the existing data. Furthermore, our studies revealed an important difference in the separation profile, i.e., the monolithic capillary column could resolve smaller oligosaccharides to a greater extent.     

Isolation of the major O-glycosidically linked oligosaccharides obtained by alkaline borohydride degradation of human meconium glycoproteins

Neutral and acidic oligosaccharides derived from human meconium glycoproteins by alkaline borohydride degradation have been separated by high-performance liquid chromatography on a Micro-Pak anion-exchange column. In each class, oligosaccharides were purified by normal-phase (neutral and acidic oligosaccharides) and reversed-phase (neutral oligosaccharides) chromatography. Effective separations of neutral oligosaccharides and acidic oligosaccharides were achieved.     

Multi-dimensional mapping of pyridylamine-labeled N-linked oligosaccharides by capillary electrophoresis

A simple, sensitive and reproducible multi-dimensional capillary electrophoresis (CE) oligosaccharide mapping method is reported. The structures of 20 identified N-linked oligosaccharides have been assigned mapping positions from which co-migrating unknown oligosaccharides can be characterized. The separation protocols developed have been demonstrated to separate both charged and neutral oligosaccharides. One dimension involves electroendosmotic flow-assisted CE in a sodium acetate buffer, pH 4.0. A second dimension involves separation based on borate complexation electrophoresis in a polyethylene glycol-containing buffer. A third dimension developed specifically for neutral oligosaccharides, using a sodium phosphate buffer, pH 2.5, has been shown to resolve neutral species not able to be separated by the other two dimensions. Thus, a three-dimensional map was generated to facilitate structural characterization of these oligosaccharides.     

Two-dimensional mapping by high-performance liquid chromatography of pyridylamino oligosaccharides from various glycosphingolipids.

A method to map sugars two-dimensionally for the analysis of the structures of oligosaccharides from glycosphingolipids is described. Nine neutral and ten acidic oligosaccharides were obtained from glycosphingolipids by endoglycoceramidase digestion and labelled with 2-aminopyridine. The pyridylamino oligosaccharides were clearly separated by high-performance liquid chromatography on commercially available C18-silica and amide-silica column. All compounds tested were mapped without any overlapping. The separation of the pyridylamino oligosaccharides on the C18-silica column depended on the numbers and positions of sialic acid and N-acetylhexosamine residues; on the amide-silica column, the separation depended on the total number of sugar residues.     

Separation of Reducing Oligosaccharides Derived from Glycoproteins on Stable Polymeric HPLC Packings

Abstract

A multidimensional high performance liquid chromatographic approach has been designed to purify and isolate oligosaccharides derived from glycoproteins prior to structure elucidation. After release by chemical or enzymatic means, crude oligosaccharide mixtures can be fractionated into acidic and neutral glycans by using a stable polymeric anion exchange column, Glyco-Pak DEAE. Acidic fractions can be further separated on the same column by changing mobile phase selectivity. Neutral oligosaccharides are resolved using partition mode chromatography first on a silica-based Carbohydrate Analysis column followed by a hydroxylated polymeric Glyco-Pak N column. Crude mixtures containing only neutral glycans can be resolved directly on Glyco-Pak N. These stable polymeric columns do not shed packing materials which may interfere with post-column structural analyses such as NMR. This multicolumn strategy is demonstrated by using acidic and neutral oligosaccharides derived from hydrazinolysis of fetuin and ovomucoid respectively and by using high mannose compounds released by Endohexosaminidase H treatment as examples which support this approach.     

Comparative studies on the analysis of glycosylation heterogeneity of sialic acid-containing glycoproteins using capillary electrophoresis

Frontal affinity chromatography is a method for quantitative analysis of biomolecular interactions. We reinforced it by incorporating various merits of a contemporary liquid chromatography system. As a model study, the interaction between an immobilized Caenorhabditis elegans galectin (LEC-6) and fluorescently labeled oligosaccharides (pyridylaminated sugars) was analyzed. LEC-6 was coupled to N-hydroxysuccinimide-activated Sepharose 4 Fast Flow (100 μm diameter), and packed into a miniature column (e.g., 10×4.0 mm, 0.126 ml). Twelve pyridylaminated oligosaccharides were applied to the column through a 2-ml sample loop, and their elution patterns were monitored by fluorescence. The volume of the elution front (V) determined graphically for each sample was compared with that obtained in the presence of an excess amount of hapten saccharide, lactose (V₀); and the dissociation constant, K_d, was calculated according to the literature [K. Kasai, Y. Oda, M. Nishikawa, S. Ishii, J. Chromatogr. 376 (1986) 33]. This system also proved to be useful for an inverse confirmation; that is, application of galectins to an immobilized glycan column (in the present case, asialofetuin was immobilized on Sepharose 4 Fast Flow), and the elution profiles were monitored by fluorescence based on tryptophan. The relative affinity of various galectins for asialofetuin could be easily compared in terms of the extent of retardation. The newly constructed system proved to be extremely versatile. It enabled rapid (analysis time 12 min/cycle) and sensitive (20 nM for pyridylaminated derivatives, and 1 μg/ml for protein) analyses of lectin–carbohydrate interactions. It should become a powerful tool for elucidation of biomolecular interactions, in particular for functional analysis of a large number of proteins that should be the essential issues of post-genome projects.     

Introducing porous graphitized carbon liquid chromatography with evaporative light scattering and mass spectrometry detection into cell wall oligosaccharide analysis

Separation and characterization of complex mixtures of oligosaccharides is quite difficult and, depending on elution conditions, structural information is often lost. Therefore, the use of a porous-graphitized-carbon (PGC)-HPLC-ELSD-MSⁿ-method as analytical tool for the analysis of oligosaccharides derived from plant cell wall polysaccharides has been investigated. It is demonstrated that PGC-HPLC can be widely used for neutral and acidic oligosaccharides derived from cell wall polysaccharides. Furthermore, it is a non-modifying technique that enables the characterization of cell wall oligosaccharides carrying, e.g. acetyl groups and methylesters. Neutral oligosaccharides are separated based on their size as well as on their type of linkage and resulting 3D-structure. Series of the planar β-(1,4)-xylo- and β-(1,4)-gluco-oligosaccharides are retained much more by the PGC material than the series of β-(1,4)-galacto-, β-(1,4)-manno- and α-(1,4)-gluco-oligosaccharides. Charged oligomers such as α-(1,4)-galacturonic acid oligosaccharides are strongly retained and are eluted only after addition of trifluoroacetic acid depending on their net charge. Online-MS-coupling using a 1:1 splitter enables quantitative detection of ELSD as well as simple identification of many oligosaccharides, even when separation of oligosaccharides within a complex mixture is not complete. Consequently, PGC-HPLC-separation in combination with MS-detection gives a powerful tool to identify a wide range of neutral and acidic oligosaccharides derived from various cell wall polysaccharides.     

Fully automated two-dimensional high-performance liquid chromatography with electrospray ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry for the determination of oligosaccharides in glycopeptides after enzymic fluorescence labeling

Two-dimensional high-performance liquid chromatography using an electrospray ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (2D-HPLC-ESI-TOF-MS) system was established for the on-line determination of asparagine-linked oligosaccharides in glycopeptides. The analysis of the oligosaccharides started with the enzymic transglycosylation reaction utilizing Endo-beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase (Endo-M). The oligosaccharides were transferred to a fluorescent acceptor (NDA-Asn-GlcNAc) with Endo-M to produce the fluorescent oligosaccharides. The resulting fluorescent oligosaccharides were specifically isolated from the non-fluorescent oligosaccharides with fluorescence detection after separation by the 1st dimension Amide-80 column. The fraction of fluorescent oligosaccharides was effectively trapped in the anion exchange column. The trapped oligosaccharides were then separated by the 2nd dimension ODS column and sensitively determined by ESI-TOF-MS. Disialo-Asn (a model oligosaccharide) and several oligosaccharides liberated from ovalbumin could be efficiently separated by the 2D-HPLC and identified from the ESI-TOF-MS. Based on these results, the proposed 2D-HPLC-ESI-TOF-MS system may be useful for on-line oligosaccharide analyses. Although the analytical run time is still long, a high-throughput determination will be performed by optimization of the 2D-HPLC conditions.     

Separation of isomeric 2-aminopyridine derivatized N-glycans and N-glycopeptides of human serum immunoglobulin G by using a zwitterionic type of hydrophilic-interaction chromatography

Isomeric oligosaccharides and isomeric glycopeptides are sometimes difficult to separate on normal-phase (NP) and reversed-phase (RP) columns. A zwitterionic type of hydrophilic-interaction chromatography column with sulfobetaine groups (called ZIC-HILIC column) was first applied to the separation of 2-aminopyridine derivatized (PA) N-glycans and tryptic peptides of human serum immunoglobulin G (IgG). It is shown that the ZIC-HILIC column has high capability for structural recognition of isomeric N-glycans as well as high selectivity for glycopeptides. The former feature (i.e., structural recognition) was proven by sufficient separation of neutral PA N-glycan isomers, which are usually difficult to separate on NP and RP columns. In addition, it is noteworthy that IgG glycopeptides consisting of isomeric N-glycans and the same peptide sequences can be sufficiently separated on a ZIC-HILIC column. The latter feature (i.e., selectivity) was also demonstrated by easily separating two peptide groups with/without N-glycans. Thus, we note that the ZIC-HILIC column is highly promising for a simple analysis of N-glycans and N-glycopeptide samples.     

Chromatographic methods for product-profile analysis and isolation of oligosaccharides produced by heparinase-catalyzed depolymerization of heparin.

A two-dimensional chromatography method for monitoring the formation of oligosaccharides produced by heparinase-catalyzed depolymerization of heparin is reported. In the first step of the two-dimensional method, the depolymerized heparin is size-fractionated by high-performance gel permeation chromatography (HPGPC). The size-uniform fractions are then separated on the basis of charge by strong anion-exchange (SAX) HPLC on a high resolution CarboPac PA1 column. To demonstrate application of the two-dimensional product-profile analysis method, data are presented for the heparinase I-catalyzed depolymerization of heparin in the absence and presence of histamine, a ligand that binds site-specifically to heparin. Results from the two-dimensional analysis indicate that histamine alters the extent of depolymerization and the product-profiles for the tetrasaccharide and hexasaccharide fractions. The use of CarboPac PA1 columns for the semi-preparative scale separation of oligosaccharides in size-uniform fractions isolated from depolymerized heparin by low-pressure (gravity flow) GPC is also reported. The semi-preparative scale CarboPac PA1 column gives high resolution and excellent reproducibility after repeated use over an extended period of time, making it possible to reliably combine fractions from multiple separations. The oligosaccharides are eluted from the CarboPac PA1 column with a NaCl gradient at relatively low pH (3 or 7) where they are stable. An efficient two-step procedure is described for desalting oligosaccharides separated     

The combination of normal phase with reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography for the analysis of asparagine-linked neutral oligosaccharides labelled with p-aminobenzoic ethyl ester.

We have developed a novel approach for the analysis of asparagine-linked neutral oligosaccharides derived from glycoproteins. The oligosaccharides are labelled with p-aminobenzoic ethyl ester and the derivatives are separated on two high performance liquid chromatographic columns, one containing amide-silica and the other containing octadecyl-silica. The elution positions of 39 different ABEE-oligosaccharides on the two columns were plotted on a two-dimensional map. Unique non-overlapping positions of these oligosaccharides demonstrate that this technology would be useful for the identification of Asn-linked oligosaccharides at high sensitivity.     

Analysis of glycoprotein-derived oligosaccharides in glycoproteins detected on two-dimensional gel by capillary electrophoresis using on-line concentration method

Capillary electrophoresis (CE) is an effective tool to analyze carbohydrate mixture derived from glycoproteins with high resolution. However, CE has a disadvantage that a few nanoliters of a sample solution are injected to a narrow capillary. Therefore, we have to prepare a sample solution of high concentration for CE analysis. In the present study, we applied head column field-amplified sample stacking method to the analysis of N-linked oligosaccharides derived from glycoprotein separated by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. Model studies demonstrated that we achieved 60-360 times concentration effect on the analysis of carbohydrate chains labeled with 3-aminobenzoic acid (3-AA). The method was applied to the analysis of N-linked oligosaccharides from glycoproteins separated and detected on PAGE gel. Heterogeneity of alpha1-acid glycoprotein (AGP), i.e. glycoforms, was examined by 2D-PAGE and N-linked oligosaccharides were released by in-gel digestion with PNGase F. The released oligosaccharides were derivatized with 3-AA and analyzed by CE. The results showed that glycoforms having lower pI values contained a larger amount of tetra- and tri-antennary oligosaccharides. In contrast, glycoforms having higher pI values contained bi-antennary oligosaccharides abundantly. The result clearly indicated that the spot of a glycoprotein glycoform detected by Coomassie brilliant blue staining on 2D-PAGE gel is sufficient for quantitative profiling of oligosaccharides.     

3-氨基-9-乙基咔唑衍生化寡糖混合物的高效液相色谱分离及激光解吸电离飞行时间质谱分析

建立了以3-氨基-9-乙基咔唑(AEC)为衍生化试剂对寡糖的标记方法。寡糖的还原端与AEC的伯氨基反应生成烯胺,再被NaBH3CN还原为二级胺,使得寡糖被AEC标记。衍生物通过反相高效液相色谱分离纯化,采用的色谱柱为Waters Symmetry C18柱(3.9 mm×150 mm,5 μm),乙腈和乙酸铵水溶液(pH 4.5)为流动相,梯度洗脱,在254 nm波长处检测,并以基质辅助激光解吸电离飞行时间质谱进行分析。在此衍生化条件和色谱条件下,葡寡糖衍生物分离良好,并且AEC衍生可显著提高葡寡糖的质谱检测灵敏度。该方法适用于寡糖的分离纯化和结构分析,并与生物质谱具有良好的兼容性,表明该方法在微量寡糖链分析方面有广阔的应用前景。     

Infrared multiphoton dissociation spectroscopic analysis of peptides and oligosaccharides by using fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry with a midinfrared free-electron laser

The fragmentation of peptides and oligosaccharides in the gas phase was investigated by means of electrospray ionization Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance (FTICR) mass spectrometry coupled with dissociation by a laser-cleavage infrared multiphoton dissociation (IRMPD) technique. In this technique, an IR free-electron laser is used as a tunable source of IR radiation to cause cleavage of the ionized samples introduced into the FTICR cell. The gas-phase IRMPD spectra of protonated peptides (substance P and angiotensin II) and two sodiated oligosaccharides (sialyl Lewis X and lacto-N-fucopentaose III) were obtained over the IR scan range of 5.7-9.5 microm. In the IRMPD spectra for the peptide, fragment ions are observed as y/b-type fragment ions in the range 5.7-7.5 microm, corresponding to cleavage of the backbone of the parent amino acid sequence, whereas the spectra of the oligosaccharides have major peaks in the range 8.4-9.5 microm, corresponding to photoproducts of the B/Y type.     

Determination of neutral oligosaccharide fractions from human milk by gel permeation chromatography.

A gel permeation chromatographic method for quantifying neutral oligosaccharide fractions from human milk has been developed. Oligosaccharides from monofucosyllactoses to trifucosyllacto-N-hexaoses were separated according to size on a Fractogel TSK HW 40 (S) column. Refractive index detection of monofucosyllactoses to difucosyllacto-N-tetraoses yielded a constant mass response factor of ca. 1 relative to glucose. After the addition of glucose as an internal standard, oligosaccharides were isolated from human milk by ethanol precipitation or two ultrafiltration procedures. The oligosaccharide concentrations found by the ultrafiltration procedures were significantly lower (significance level 0.05) than those determined by the ethanol precipitation procedure.     

一种海洋弧菌(Vibrio sp. WYA)褐藻胶裂合酶降解特性研究

从海洋弧菌(Vibrio sp.  WYA)中得到一种褐藻胶裂合酶， 将其分别作用于寡聚甘露糖醛酸和古罗糖醛酸纯品(dp5~7)以及褐藻胶， 采用HPTLC和FPLC等技术对产物进行分析， 并应用ESI\|MS和NMR进行结构分析. 结果表明， 该酶最小识别片段为六糖， 终产物主要为三糖， 且识别和切割位点为甘露糖醛酸残基.     

On-line liquid chromatography/thermospray mass spectrometry in the analysis of oligosaccharides.

The analysis of intact neutral oligosaccharides by on-line liquid chromatography/thermospray mass spectrometry is described. Molecular-weight information on oligomers up to a degree of polymerization of 10 is obtained using an aqueous mobile phase containing 10(-4) mol/L sodium acetate, which was found to be compatible with thermospray interfacing and ionization. Ions due to sodiated and disodiated oligosaccharides are observed under these conditions without fragmentation. The aqueous 10(-4) mol/L sodium acetate mobile phase is demonstrated to be applicable in the separation of mixtures of oligosaccharides on a reversed-phase octadecyl-modified silica column.     

Ion exchange chromatographic separation and isolation of oligosaccharides of intact low-molecular-weight heparin for the determination of their anticoagulant and anti-inflammatory properties

It is well known that enoxaparin, a widely used anticoagulant and low-molecular-weight heparin containing a large number of oligosaccharides, possesses anti-inflammatory activity. Whilst enoxaparin has shown promising results in various inflammatory disorders, some of its oligosaccharides have anti-inflammatory properties and others increase the risk of bleeding due to their anticoagulant effects. The aim of this study was to develop an effective ion exchange chromatographic (IC) technique which allows the separation, isolation and, consequently, the identification of different oligosaccharides of enoxaparin with or without anticoagulant activity. The developed method utilises a semi-preparative CarboPac PA100 (9?×?250 mm) ion exchange column with sodium chloride gradient elution and UV detection at 232 nm. The method successfully resolved enoxaparin into more than 30 different peaks. IC-derived oligosaccharides with high, moderate, low or no anticoagulant activity were identified using an anti-factor Xa assay. The anti-inflammatory activity of selected oligosaccharides was investigated using the Griess assay. Using this technique, the oligosaccharides of enoxaparin with low or no anticoagulant activity, whilst exhibiting significant anti-inflammatory activity, could be fractionated. This technique can provide a platform to identify the oligosaccharides which are devoid of significant anticoagulant activity and are responsible for the therapeutic effects of enoxaparin that have been observed in various inflammatory conditions.

Analysis of sialyl oligosaccharides by high-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionisation-mass spectrometry with differentiation of alpha2-3 and alpha2-6 sialyl linkages

A method for analysing sialyl oligosaccharides from bovine colostrum using high-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionisation-mass spectrometry (HPLC-ESI-MS) is described. Under positive ionisation mode, mass spectra of alpha2-3 and alpha2-6 linkages were different, and the former produced a prominent B2 (or B3 in disialyl lactose) mass fragment. This fragment was absent from mass spectra with alpha2-6 linkages. Two sialyl oligosaccharides, which have not been reported previously, were tentatively identified. One comprises a N-acetyl neuraminic acid (Neu5Ac), two hexoses (Hex), and one N-acetyl hexosamine (HexNAc) residue ((Neu5Ac)1 (Hex)2 (HexNAc)1), and the other comprises one Neu5Ac and one Hex residue ((Neu5Ac)1(Hex)1).     

On-line liquid chromatography-electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry for kappa-carrageenan oligosaccharides with a porous graphitic carbon column

Enzymatically digested oligosaccharides of kappa-carrageenans were separated on a porous graphitic carbon (PGC) column and characterised on-line by electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry (ESI-MS). Two different developing ions were applied. Among them ammonium hydrogencarbonate showed more eluting power as it should on normal anion-exchange stationary phases. The oligosaccharides were detected by ESI-MS as fully deprotonated oligosaccharides.