Structures and fragmentation of [Cu(uracil-H)(uracil)]+ in the gas phase

Complexes of copper (II) ions and uracil were studied using tandem mass spectrometry (Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance, FTICR, mass spectrometry) including extensive isotopic labeling as well as theoretical calculations. Positive ion electrospray mass spectra of aqueous solutions of CuCl(2) and uracil show that the [Cu(Ura-H)(Ura)](+) ion is the most abundant ion even at low concentrations of uracil. Sustained off-resonance irradiation collision-induced dissociation (SORI-CID) experiments show that the lowest energy decomposition pathway for [Cu(Ura-H)(Ura)](+) , surprisingly, is not the loss of uracil, but the loss of HNCO followed by HCN as the most abundant secondary fragmentation product. MS(n) studies identified primary, secondary and tertiary fragmentation products. Extensive isotopic labeling studies, as well as computational studies allowed for a detailed fragmentation scheme for the [Cu(Ura-H)(Ura)](+) ion, beginning with the lowest energy structure.     

An Isotope‐Coded Fluorogenic Cross‐Linker for High‐Performance Target Identification Based on Photoaffinity Labeling

A photoaffinity labeling (PAL)‐based method for the rapid identification of target proteins is presented in which a high‐performance chemical tag, an isotope‐coded fluorescent tag (IsoFT), can be attached to the interacting site by irradiation. Labeled peptides can be easily distinguished among numerous proteolytic digests by sequential detection with highly sensitive fluorescence spectroscopy and mass spectrometry. Subsequent MS/MS analysis provides amino acid sequence information with a higher depth of coverage. The combination of PAL and heterogeneous target‐selecting techniques significantly reduces the amount of time and protein required for identification. An additional photocleavable moiety successfully accelerated proteomic analysis using cell lysate. This method is a widely applicable approach for the rapid and accurate identification of interacting proteins.     

槲皮素与桑色素ESI-MS裂解行为的比较分析

运用量子化学方法辅助解析并比较槲皮素与桑色素在电喷雾离子阱质谱（ESI-MS）负离子模式下的裂解行为。依据密度泛函理论（Densityfunctionaltheory,DFT）,在B3LYP/6-31G（d）水平,对槲皮素与桑色素的分子空间构型进行优化,确定稳定的几何构型与去质子化位点,在RB3LYP/6-31+G（2d,2p）水平,计算相对碎裂电压下的二级质谱中碎片离子处于稳定状态时的能量,通过比较准分子离子稳定构型并结合基组重叠误差（Basissetsuperpositionerror,BSSE）校正后的键解离能（Bonddissociationenergy,BDE）,推导了质谱碎裂过程。结果显示：槲皮素的稳定构型为A,B,C环处于同一平面,桑色素上的2′-OH使得B环与AC环之间翻转一定角度,二面角D（1,2,1′,6′）为-134.6624°。槲皮素与桑色素的质谱裂解过程主要通过C环跨环裂解产生,且具有多种开裂方式,开裂先后顺序为：1,2开裂、0,2开裂、1,3开裂、1,4开裂与0,4开裂,分别生成碎片离子1,2A-,0,2A-,1,3A-,1,4A-与0,4A-,并逐步进行后续裂解,而2′-OH的存在促进了桑色素的裂解。该研究为进一步揭示黄酮醇类化合物的质谱裂解规律提供了理论依据。     

Conformer selection and intensified dynamics during catalytic turnover in chymotrypsin

Intensified searching: In enzymes, conformational dynamics are linked to the catalytic reaction coordinate. A novel analytical approach was used to monitor catalysis-linked dynamics in chymotrypsin, revealing that in some enzymes, catalysis is promoted by intensified, but undirected conformational sampling after substrate binding.     

Differentiation of sulfate and phosphate by H/D exchange mass spectrometry: application to isoflavone

Often phosphorylation or sulfation is an important step which occurs in the signal transduction and cascade of metabolic pathways. Some natural products and metabolites contain one or more sulfate or phosphate groups. Isoflavone sulfate has been identified from high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) and enzymatic digestion by sulfatase. We previously reported the new water-soluble isoflavone analogs, daidzein 7-O-phosphate and genistein 7-O-phosphate, which were surprisingly hydrolyzed by sulfatase. In this previous study, we could not determine the phosphate from the results of HRMS and enzymatic digestion, that is, HRMS and enzymatic digestion did not provide clear evidence. In this case, we drew conclusions from NMR analysis. HRMS has been ineffective with a regular fast atom bombardment (FAB) mass spectrometer to distinguish between phosphate and sulfate since the mass difference is only 0.009 mass units. There was, however, no conventional method of microanalysis to distinguish phosphate from sulfate owing to the same nominal mass. It is still very difficult to determine by negative FABMS [--O--P(==O)(OH)(2)] = 80 and [--O--S(==O)(2)OH] = 80. In this paper, we report a method to distinguish between these groups by using a popular low-resolution mass instrument; thus, phosphate and sulfate were measured by H/D exchange mass spectrometry at the picomole level to differentiate [--O--P(==O)(OD)(2)] = 82 and [--O--S(==O)(2)OD] = 81, respectively. This method is applicable not only to the isoflavone, but also to other phospho and sulfo compounds.     

Characterisation of Taxlllaids A–G; Natural Products from Xenorhabdus indica

Six new lipodepsipeptides and an additional linear derivative named taxlllaids A–G ( 1 – 7 ) have been identified in the entomopathogenic bacterium Xenorhabdus indica. The structures of the main compounds have been solved by detailed NMR spectroscopic analysis and the structures of minor derivatives were elucidated by a combination of labelling experiments and detailed MS experiments. The absolute configuration of the taxlllaids was deduced by using the advanced Marfey method and analysis of the biosynthesis gene cluster showing the presence of epimerisation domains, which was subsequently proved to be correct by solid‐phase peptide synthesis of all taxlllaids. The exchange of a single amino acid in the adenylation domain was shown to be responsible for substrate promiscuity of the third A domain, resulting in the incorporation of leucine, phenylalanine or tyrosine. Bioactivity testing revealed the taxlllaids to be weakly active against Plasmodium falciparum and against a number of eukaryotic cell lines.     

Structural characterization of in vitro rat liver microsomal metabolites of antihistamine desloratadine using LTQ-Orbitrap hybrid mass spectrometer in combination with online hydrogen/deuterium exchange HR-LC/MS

In vitro drug metabolism study is an integral part of drug discovery process. In this report, we have described the application of LTQ-Orbitrap hybrid mass spectrometer in conjunction with online hydrogen (H)/deuterium (D) exchange high resolution (HR)-LC/MS for structural characterization of in vitro rat liver microsomal metabolites of antihistamine desloratadine. Five metabolites M1--M5 have been identified, including three hydroxylated metabolites M1--M3, one N-oxide M4 and one uncommon aromatized N-oxide M5. Accurate mass data have been obtained in both full scan and MSn mode support assignments of metabolite structures with reported mass errors less than 3 ppm. Online H/D exchange HR-LC/MS experiments provide additional evidence in differentiating hydroxylated metabolites from N-oxides. This study demonstrates the effectiveness of this approach in structural characterization of drug metabolites.     

Secondary‐Ion Mass Spectrometry of Genetically Encoded Targets

Secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) is generally used in imaging the isotopic composition of various materials. It is becoming increasingly popular in biology, especially for investigations of cellular metabolism. However, individual proteins are difficult to identify in SIMS, which limits the ability of this technology to study individual compartments or protein complexes. We present a method for specific protein isotopic and fluorescence labeling (SPILL), based on a novel click reaction with isotopic probes. Using this method, we added ¹⁹F‐enriched labels to different proteins, and visualized them by NanoSIMS and fluorescence microscopy. The ¹⁹F signal allowed the precise visualization of the protein of interest, with minimal background, and enabled correlative studies of protein distribution and cellular metabolism or composition. SPILL can be applied to biological systems suitable for click chemistry, which include most cell‐culture systems, as well as small model organisms.     

基于密度泛函理论的橘霉素衍生物质谱裂解行为研究

采用电喷雾离子阱质谱(ESI-IT-MSn),研究了橘霉素衍生物正离子模式下的裂解行为,并结合密度泛函理论(DFT)证明裂解途径的可靠性,为同类化合物的准确鉴定提供实验和理论基础。核磁共振仪对海莲内生真菌代谢产物分离得到的橘霉素衍生物结构进行确认,电喷雾离子阱质谱正离子模式扫描,测定化合物氢氘交换产物多级裂解质谱图,并结合键断裂能和Mulliken电荷分布,进一步验证裂解规律。实验结果表明,分子结构中-COOH和CH3COO-在一级裂解过程中易脱除CO2和COCH2,CID-MS2观测到丢失H2O/HDO、H2O和-CH3或CHCO/CDCO的碎片离子峰,且丰度依次降低,理论计算也证明,这些碎片离子的总能量依次增大,稳定性降低,键断裂能逐渐增大。该结果丰富了橘霉素衍生物的电喷雾质谱裂解规律,有助于橘霉素衍生物结构的准确鉴定,为该类化合物的检测和痕量分析提供了更多支持。     

Development of isotope dilution-liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry combined with standard addition techniques for the accurate determination of tocopherols in infant formula

During the development of isotope dilution-liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (ID-LC/MS) for tocopherol analysis in infant formula, biased measurement results were observed when deuterium-labeled tocopherols were used as internal standards. It turned out that the biases came from intermolecular H/D exchange and intramolecular H/D scrambling of internal standards in sample preparation processes. Degrees of H/D exchange and scrambling showed considerable dependence on sample matrix. Standard addition-isotope dilution mass spectrometry (SA-IDMS) based on LC/MS was developed in this study to overcome the shortcomings of using deuterium-labeled internal standards while the inherent advantage of isotope dilution techniques is utilized for the accurate recovery correction in sample preparation processes. Details of experimental scheme, calculation equation, and uncertainty evaluation scheme are described in this article. The proposed SA-IDMS method was applied to several infant formula samples to test its validity. The method was proven to have a higher-order metrological quality with providing very accurate and precise measurement results.     

Rapid identification of phase I and II metabolites of artemisinin antimalarials using LTQ‐Orbitrap hybrid mass spectrometer in combination with online hydrogen/deuterium exchange technique

Artemisinin drugs have become the first‐line antimalarials in areas of multi‐drug resistance. However, monotherapy with artemisinin drugs results in comparatively high recrudescence rates. Autoinduction of CYP‐mediated metabolism, resulting in reduced exposure, has been supposed to be the underlying mechanism. To better understand the autoinduction of artemisinin drugs, we evaluated the biotransformation of artemisinin, also known as Qing‐hao‐su (QHS), and its active derivative dihydroartemisinin (DHA) in vitro and in vivo, using LTQ‐Orbitrap hybrid mass spectrometer in conjunction with online hydrogen (H)/deuterium (D) exchange high‐resolution (HR)‐LC/MS (mass spectrometry) for rapid structural characterization. The LC separation was improved allowing the separation of QHS parent drugs and their metabolites from their diastereomers. Thirteen phase I metabolites of QHS have been identified in liver microsomal incubates, rat urine, bile and plasma, including six deoxyhydroxylated metabolites, five hydroxylated metabolites, one dihydroxylated metabolite and deoxyartemisinin. Twelve phase II metabolites of QHS were detected in rat bile, urine and plasma. DHA underwent similar metabolic pathways, and 13 phase I metabolites and 3 phase II metabolites were detected. Accurate mass data were obtained in both full‐scan and MS/MS mode to support assignments of metabolite structures. Online H/D exchange LC‐HR/MS experiments provided additional evidence in differentiating deoxydihydroxylated metabolites from mono‐hydroxylated metabolites. The results showed that the main phase I metabolites of artemisinin drugs are hydroxylated and deoxyl products, and they will undergo subsequent phase II glucuronidation processes. This study also demonstrated the effectiveness of online H/D exchange LC‐HR/MSⁿ technique in rapid identification of drug metabolites. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.