Monitoring glycosylation pattern changes of glycoproteins using multi-lectin affinity chromatography

Previously, we reported that the distribution of glycoproteins into the lectin displacement fractions of a multi-lectin affinity column was determined by the glycosylation patterns of the proteins. This distribution was observed by the sequential use of displacers specific to the lectins in the column. In this study we have evaluated the multi-lectin column (containing Concanavalin A, Wheat germ agglutinin and Jacalin lectin) to screen glycoproteins with known glycosylation pattern changes. The presence of a glycoprotein in a given displacer fraction was determined by LC-MS/MS analysis of a tryptic digest. We have used the enzyme neuraminidase to modify the oligosaccharide chains present in human transferrin, and used the enzymes, neuraminidase and fucosidase, to modify glycoproteins present in human serum. Then, by comparison with the untreated samples, we demonstrated a distribution shift of the enzyme-treated serum glycoproteins in the displacement fractions isolated from the multi-lectin column. The fractions were analyzed by a protein assay, Sequest rank comparison and peak area measurement from the extracted ion chromatogram. The results indicated that the multi-lectin affinity column (M-LAC) is sensitive to changes in the content of sialic acid and fucosyl residues present in serum glycoproteins, and has the potential to be used to screen serum proteins for glycosylation changes due to disease. In addition, the use of a glycosidase to induce specific structural changes in glycoproteins can support the development of multi-lectin column formats specific for detecting changes in the glycoproteome of certain diagnostic fluids and types of disease.     

Preparation of a high-performance multi-lectin affinity chromatography (HP-M-LAC) adsorbent for the analysis of human plasma glycoproteins

We report on the preparation of an improved multi-lectin affinity support for HPLC separations. We combined the selectivity of three different lectins: concanavalin A (ConA), wheat germ agglutinin (WGA), and jacalin (JAC). Each lectin was first covalently immobilized onto a polymeric matrix and then the three lectin media were combined in equal ratios. The beads were packed into a column to produce a mixed-bed multi-lectin HPLC column (high-performance multi-lectin affinity chromatography (HP-M-LAC)) for fast chromatographic affinity separations. The support was characterized with respect to kinetics of immobilization, ligand density, and binding capacity for human plasma glycoproteins. A high lectin density (15 mg/mL of beads) was found to be optimal for the binding of glycoproteins from human plasma. A single clinical sample can be fractionated in less than 10 min per run, making this a useful sample preparation tool for proteomics/glycoproteomics studies associated with disease abnormalities.     

Depletion of high-abundance proteins from human plasma using a combination of an affinity and pseudo-affinity column

Human serum albumin (HSA) and immunoglobulin G (IgG) represent over 75% of all proteins present in human plasma. These high-abundance proteins prevent the detection of low-abundance proteins which are potential markers for various diseases. The depletion of HSA and IgG is therefore essential for further proteome analysis. In this paper we describe the optimization of conditions for selective depletion of HSA and IgG using affinity and pseudo-affinity chromatography. A BIA Separations CIM (convective interaction media) Protein G disk was applied for the removal of IgG and the Mimetic Blue SA A6XL stationary phase for the removal of HSA. The binding and the elution buffer for CIM Protein G disk were chosen on the basis of the peak shape. The dynamic binding capacity was determined. It was shown to be dependent on the buffer system used and independent of the flow rate and of the concentration of IgG. Beside the binding capacity for the IgG standard, the binding capacity was also determined for IgG in human plasma. The Mimetic Blue SA A6XL column was characterized using human plasma. The selectivity of the depletion was dependent on the amount of human plasma that was loaded on the column. After the conditions on both supports had been optimized, the Mimetic Blue SA A6XL stationary phase was combined with the CIM Protein G disk in order to simultaneously deplete samples of human plasma. A centrifuge spin column that enables the removal of IgG and HSA from 20 μL of human plasma was designed. The results of the depletion were examined using sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and two-dimensional gel electrophoresis.     

Synthesis and application of a macroporous boronate affinity monolithic column using a metal-organic gel as a porogenic template for the specific capture of glycoproteins

A macroporous boronate affinity monolithic column was prepared and applied to specifically capture glycoproteins using metal-organic gels (MOGs) as a porogenic template. This newly explored application of MOGs has proven to be a more convenient method for the formation of macropores in contrast to traditional porogenic methods. The poly (3-acrylamidophenylboronic acid-co-ethylene dimethacrylate) monolithic columns were synthesized in stainless columns by in situ polymerization. To fabricate the macroporous formation with a uniformed open-channel network, the preparation conditions, such as reaction temperature, the concentration of the MOGs and the ratio of monomers were systematically investigated. The prepared macroporous monoliths were characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and mercury intrusion porosimetry. Furthermore, horseradish peroxidase (HRP) and transferrin (TF) were chosen as test glycoproteins, and the chromatographic analysis demonstrated that the macroporous boronate affinity monoliths exhibited a higher selectivity and better dynamic binding capacity toward glycoproteins compared with non-glycoproteins. The resulted affinity monolithic column was successfully employed to specifically capture TF from a bovine serum sample.     

Thermodynamics of porphyrin binding to human serum albumin using affinity capillary electrophoresis

Summary The interaction thermodynamics of heptacarboxylporphyrin (HCP) and protoporhyrin (PP) with human serum albumin (HSA) was studied by affinity capillary electrophoresis (ACE) over the temperature range of 25–50°C, where HCP and PP bound to HSAvia 1:1 molecular association. The binding equilibrium constants (pH 7.4, phosphate buffer) for the binding of HCP with HSA were found to decrease with an increase in temperature, whereas the binding constants of the PP/HSA system appeared to be independent of temperature changes over the range studied. The van’t Hoff relationship (25–50°C) was found to be linear for the interaction of either HCP or PP with HSA. However, the interaction thermodynamics for both of these porphyrins with HSA were found to be quite different. In particular, the interaction of HCP (a hydrophilic porphyrin) with HSA appeared to be based on an enthalpy-driven process, whereas the binding between PP (a hydrophobic porphyrin) and HSA driven by a favorable change in entropy. The ability of using ACE to evaluate the interaction thermodynamics of serum proteins (e.g., HSA) with ligands (e.g., porphyrins and related compounds) should aid in the development of new and more effective photosensitizers in the photodynamic therapy of cancer.     

Binding studies of porphyrins to human serum albumin using affinity capillary electrophoresis

The present work demonstrates that affinity capillary electrophoresis (ACE) can be employed as a valuable and powerful tool for studying the interactions between porphyrins and proteins in biological and biomedical research, such as the development of porphyrins and related compounds as efficient and selective photosensitizers in the photodynamic therapy of cancers. Binding constants of human serum albumin (HSA) to four biological porphyrins (uroporphyrin I, heptacarboxylporphyrin, coproporphyrin I, protoporphyrin IX), which possess a wide range of hydrophobicity, were estimated by ACE. Based on 1:1 molecular association between these individual porphyrins and HSA, the change of the electrophoretic mobility of HSA as a function of porphyrin concentration in the run buffer was measured and the binding constants were calculated from the slope of the Scatchard plots. The binding constant values were found to be 8.80 +/- 0.51 x 10(4) M(-1), 2.39 +/- 0.16 x 10(5) M(-1), 1.61 +/- 0.11 x 10(6) M(-1), and 9.34 +/- 0.30 x 10(6) M(-1) for uroporphyrin I, heptacarboxylporphyrin, coproporphyrin I, and protoporphyrin IX, respectively, and most of these results are in good agreement with those reported in the literature using conventional methods for binding measurements. Additionally, experimental binding constant data obtained using ACE was found to exhibit very good correlation with theoretical hydrophobicity values calculated using the Rekker's hydrophobic fragmental constant method, thus further supporting the hypothesis that the hydrophobicity of the porphyrin side chains play an important role in governing the hydrophobic interaction of porphyrins with serum proteins such as HSA.     

High-performance liquid affinity chromatography for the purification of immunoglobulin A from human serum using jacalin

A high-performance liquid affinity chromatographic method for the purification of serum immunoglobulin A (IgA) using a jacalin column is described. The automated procedure takes about 2 with minimal manipulation. The yields of the isolated IgA and of its IgG and IgM contamination were studied by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) of 30 sera. Purity was assured by immunoelectrophoresis. The ratio of IgA1 to total IgA was unchanged after purification, as verified by ELISA. The results showed that greater than 90% IgA could be recovered with less than 0.5% total IgG and greater than 2.0% total IgM remaining in the fractions containing purified IgA.     

One-pot synthesis of an organic-inorganic hybrid affinity monolithic column for specific capture of glycoproteins

An inorganic-organic hybrid affinity monolithic column was synthesized by a novel "one-pot" approach. The resulting hybrid affinity monoliths have potential applications in specific recognition and enrichment of glycoproteins.     

Extraction of haemoglobin from human blood by affinity precipitation using a haptoglobin-based stimuli-responsive affinity macroligand

Affinity precipitation was compared to affinity chromatography and batch adsorption as the final purification step in a protocol for the isolation of haemoglobin from human blood. Haptoglobin was the affinity ligand. The first steps on the process were realized by traditional methods (lyses of red blood cells followed by ammonium sulphate precipitation). For affinity chromatography (and batch adsorption) the ligand was linked to Sepharose, for affinity precipitation to a thermoresponsive polymer, namely poly(N-isopropylacrylamide). Five haptoglobin-poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) bioconjugates (affinity macroligands) were constructed with different polymer: haptoglobin-coupling ratios. Conjugation of haptoglobin to the soluble poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) apparently does not change the interaction thermodynamics with haemoglobin, as the haemoglobin binding constants calculated by a Scatchard analysis for the affinity macroligand were of the same order of magnitude as those described in the literature for the haemoglobin-haptoglobin complex in solution. Two elution protocols were used for haemoglobin release from the various affinity materials, one at pH 2, the other with 5 M urea at pH 11. Both affinity chromatography and affinity precipitation yielded a pure haemoglobin of high quality. Compared to the affinity chromatography, affinity precipitation showed a significantly higher ligand efficiency (ratio of the experimental capacity to the theoretical one). The method thus makes better use of the expensive affinity ligands. As affinity precipitation only requires small temperature changes to bring about precipitation/redissolution of the affinity complexes and a centrifugation step for recovery of the precipitate, the method in addition has advantages in term of scalability and simplicity.     

Development of a disulfiram-modified human serum albumin-based HPLC column

Summary A human serum albumin (HSA)-based HPLC column has been modified in situ by disulfiram, an alcohol-deterrent drug reported to bind cys₃₄, the only free cysteine in HSA, under physiological conditions. The reversible and covalent binding of disulfiram was found to change the binding properties of the protein, giving rise to a new selector which performed differently from the native albumin-based stationary phase. When low concentrations of disulfiram were used as mobile phase modifier, reversible binding resulted in a cooperative allosteric effect with improved selector performance. Covalent modification resulted in markedly reduced affinity for binding of the drugs to sites I or II, while still maintaining enantioselectivity. This study has enabled the monitoring of interactions of disulfiram with potentially coadministered drugs, and the preparation of a chiral selector with different drug affinity and enantioselectivity.     

A two step fractionation approach for plasma proteomics using immunodepletion of abundant proteins and multi-lectin affinity chromatography: Application to the analysis of obesity, diabetes, and hypertension diseases

Plasma is an important biological material for biomarker discovery. However, the wide dynamic range in protein concentration remains a major challenge. In this paper, we introduce the development of a proteomic platform for analysis of plasma samples. The method utilizes a double fractionation approach which combines the MARS immunodepletion column with multi-lectin affinity chromatography, M-LAC, to deplete the most abundant proteins in plasma, the majority of which are glycosylated. To determine the suitability of this methodology, we applied the workflow described in this study to a sample set composed of four groups: a control pool and three different disease pools: obesity, diabetes, and hypertension. We were able to identify changes in the level of several proteins; for example, a protein such as angiotensinogen was found to be present at high levels in patients with obesity plus diabetes and hypertension. On the other hand, apolipoprotein CI was shown to be elevated in all disease groups. A review of the literature supported our observation. The methodology presented in this report was shown to be effective for profiling changes in the plasma proteome of subjects with obesity and its associated complications such as diabetes and hypertension.     

On-line simultaneous removal of human serum albumin and enrichment of doxazosin using a weak cation-exchange monolithic column

A weak cation-exchange monolithic column was prepared by modifying the GMA-EDMA (glycidyl methacrylate-co-ethylene glycol dimethacrylate) monoliths with ethylenediamine and monochloracetic acid. The properties of the column were investigated; the column exhibited the ability of low backpressure and fast analysis. Using this monolithic column, trace doxazosin in human serum albumin (HSA) solution and plasma samples has been on-line tested, the extraction efficiency and the maximum loading capacity of the monolithic column were obtained. The results showed that the monolithic column could realize deproteinization and trace drug enrichment simultaneously in the HSA solution and human plasma, which provided a simple, cheap, effective and friendly to environment method for assaying drugs in the blood.     

Approach to hydrophilic interaction chromatography column selection: Application to neurotransmitters analysis

This paper presents the comparison between 12 hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography columns that are commercially available. The main factors influencing the retention and selectivity toward 12 neurotransmitters for these different HILIC systems have been studied. For additional information, the retention data have been analyzed statistically by factor analysis. Principal component analyses (PCA) were calculated to evidence different separation behaviour between the stationary phases, based on the retention data measured for three compound classes: anionic acidic compounds, cationic basic compounds and zwitterionic amino acids. Finally, a generic procedure is suggested for optimization of HILIC analyses, depending on the ionization state of the analytes.     

HPLC analysis of manno-oligosaccharides derived from Saccharomyces cerevisiae mannan using an amino column or a graphitized carbon column

The chromatographic behavior of manno-oligosaccharides derived from Saccharomyces cerevisiae mannan on two kinds of HPLC columns, an aminopropyl-silica column or a graphitized carbon column (GCC), was investigated. The order of elution of manno-oligosaccharides on both columns with acetonitrile-water was almost the same, that is, the retention increased with increasing molecular size. However, the GCC made it possible to isolate completely two isomers of mannotrioses (M(3)-1 and M(3)-2) with different linkage positions. We reinvestigated the structures of mannobiose (M(2)), M(3)s, and mannotetraose (M(4)) that were completely isolated by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS) and NMR spectroscopy.     

Selective elution of soluble rat liver glutathione transferases from a glutathione-Sepharose affinity column

Glutathione transferases (GST) are dimeric enzymes that take part in many detoxification processes. A previous report described the use of a glutathione-Sepharose affinity matrix for the purification of human liver GST. The method involved the use of 5 mM glutathione in a high pH buffer, and the yields were nearly 100%. This method and adapted techniques have now been applied to rat liver GST. Selective GST elution can be obtained in several different ways: by stepwise change of the pH and/or glutathione concentration, and by linear gradient elution. Gel electrophoresis showed, however, that none of the fractions contained pure GST isoenzymes. Also, less than 50% of the total rat liver GST was eluted with 5 mM glutathione, in contrast to the results with human liver GST. A glutathione concentration of 30 mM is necessary for quantitative desorption of rat liver GST from a glutathione-Sepharose column.     

Fractionation of glycoproteins according to lectin affinity and molecular size using a high-performance liquid chromatography system with sequentially coupled columns

The lectin phytohaemagglutinin was coupled to porous silica (10 micron) and used as adsorbent in a high-performance liquid affinity column sequentially coupled to a TSK-G 3000SW gel permeation column. This system was used for high-speed separation/analysis of human serum glycoproteins according to their lectin affinity and molecular size. Serum samples could be resolved in at least six different peaks representing glycoproteins exhibiting different molecular weights but with a carbohydrate content compatible with the specificity of phytohaemagglutinin.     

伴刀豆凝集素修饰磁性纳米粒子富集人血清中糖蛋白及质谱鉴定

发展了一种新型的磁性纳米粒子应用于人血清中特异性糖蛋白的亲和富集。制备的磁性纳米粒子具有核/壳/壳结构,即由Fe₃O₄磁性粒子/硅胶层/有机聚合物外层构成。伴刀豆凝集素A（Con A）以共价键合的形式通过短链聚乙二醇固定在粒子表面,实现了人血清中特异性糖蛋白的高效富集。富集的蛋白经过胰蛋白酶酶解后,所得的肽段经离线的二维色谱分离,用高分辨质谱共鉴定出80种蛋白。通过NetNGlyc等搜索软件分析确定其中76种为糖蛋白,分析发现在血清中质量浓度仅为0.00001 g/L的 β -2-glycoprotein 1也得到了鉴定,表明我们发展的磁性纳米粒子与凝集素相结合的方式,可以高效地富集复杂体系中与主要蛋白成分含量相差12个数量级的低丰度糖蛋白。     

Retention of histidine-containing peptides on a nickel affinity column

The retention of histidine-containing peptides in immobilized metal-affinity chromatography is studied using several hundred modeled peptides. Retention is driven primarily by the number of histidine residues; however, the amino acid composition in the immediate vicinity plays a significant role. Specifically, the arginine and tryptophan content has to be taken into consideration. During the course of this study, an alternative tag that can be used similarly to a polyhistidine tag is discovered.     

Betulinic acid binding to human serum albumin: a study of protein conformation and binding affinity

Betulinic acid (BA) has anti cancer and anti-HIV activity and has been proved to be therapeutically effective against cancerous and HIV-infected cells. Human serum albumin (HSA) is the predominant protein in the blood. Most drugs that bind to HSA will be transported to other parts of the body. Using micro TOF-Q mass spectrometry, we have shown, for the first time that BA isolated from a plant (Tephrosia calophylla) binds to HSA. The binding constant of BA to HSA was calculated from fluorescence data and found to be K(BA)=1.685+/-0.01 x 10(6) M(-1), indicating a strong binding affinity. The secondary structure of the HSA-BA complex was determined by circular dichroism. The results indicate that the HSA in this complex is partially unfolded. Further, binding of BA at nanomolar concentrations of BA to free HSA was detected using micro TOF-Q mass spectrometry. The study revealed a mass increase from 65199 Da (free HSA) to 65643 Da (HSA+drug), where the additional mass of 444 Da was due to bound BA. Based on the results of this study, it is suggested that micro TOF-Q mass spectrometry is useful technique for drug binding studies.