Amino acids of ricin and its polypeptides

Ricin and its corresponding polypeptides (A & B chain) were purified from castor seed. The molecular weight of ricin subunits were 29,000 and 28,000 daltons. The amino acids in ricin determined were Asp45 The22 Ser40 Glu53 Cys4 Gly96 His5 Ile21 Leu33 Lys20 Met4 Phe13 Pro37 Tyr11 Ala45 Val23 Arg20 indicating that ricin contains approximately 516 amino acid residues. The amino acids of the two subunits of ricin A and B chains were Asp23 The12 Ser21 Glu29 Cys2 Gly48 His3 Ile12, Leu17 Lys10 Met2 Phe6 Pro17 Tyr7 Ala35 Val13 Arg13 while in B chain the amino acids were Asp22 The10 Ser19 Glu25 Cys2 Gly47 His1 Ile10, Leu15 Lys11 Met1 Phe7 Pro6 Tyr5 Ala32Val11 Arg10. The total helical content of ricin came around 53.6% which is a new observation.     

Essential of Proline and Valine Residues in the Peptide Derived from Lactoferrin for Angiotensin Converting Enzyme Inhibition

We synthesized Leu‐Arg‐Pro‐Val‐Ala‐Ala‐Glu, the peptide contained in lactoferrin (Lf), to identify the angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibition. In an attempt to know the structure‐activity relationship of this peptide, we replaced Pro (the third amino acid residues from N‐terminal) or Val (the fourth amino acid residues from N‐terminal) with Ala (neutral amino acid), Glu (acidic amino acid) or Lys (basic amino acid) to produce six peptides. From the in vitro ACE inhibition (IC₅₀) of these synthesized peptides, the original peptide (Leu‐Arg‐Pro‐Val‐Ala‐Ala‐Glu) showed higher ACE inhibition than the replaced six peptides. Thus, replacement of Pro at the third amino acid residues or Val at the fourth position with Ala, Glu or Lys revealed the ACE inhibition to be lower than the original form of Leu‐Arg‐Pro‐Val‐Ala‐Ala‐Glu. Otherwise, we added one peptide at the C‐terminal of Leu‐Arg‐Pro‐Val‐Ala‐Ala‐Glu and found both products with an addition of Val (Leu‐Arg‐Pro‐Val‐Ala‐Ala‐Glu‐Val) or Ile (Leu‐Arg‐Pro‐Val‐Ala‐Ala‐Glu‐Ile) showing a lower ACE inhibition than the original one. The ACE inhibitions produced by both replaced peptides were without significance. Also, deletion of the last peptide at the C‐terminal (Leu‐Arg‐Pro‐Val‐Ala‐Ala) failed to produce a marked change of ACE inhibition as compared to the original one. These results suggest that Pro and Val are essential in the peptide for inhibition of ACE activity.     

不同工艺处理的烟草中游离氨基酸含量的反相HPLC分析

烟草中的含氮化合物对烟草的感官评吸质量和吸者健康都有重要的影响。氨基酸含量与烟草的品质有着密切的关系,是重要的致香前体物质。烟草中氨基酸有20余种。在烟草调制、醇化或发酵、加工乃至燃烧过程中,游离氨基酸与还原糖之间可发生酶催化及非酶催化的棕色反应,即梅拉德反应     

Peptidomic analysis of human acquired enamel pellicle

Human acquired enamel pellicle is the result of a selective interaction of salivary proteins and peptides with the tooth surface. In the present work, the characterization of the peptides as well as the type of interactions established with the enamel surface was performed. Peptides from in vivo bovine enamel implants in the human oral cavity were sequentially extracted using guanidine and trifluoroacetic acid solutions and the fractions obtained were analysed by LC-MS and LC-MS/MS. Based on the LC-MS data, six phosphorylated peptides were identified in an intact form, strongly adsorbed to the enamel surface. Data from the LC-MS/MS analyses allowed us to identified 30 fragment peptides non-covalently bonded to enamel [basic proline-rich proteins, histatins (1 and 3) and acidic proline-rich protein classes]. The tandem mass spectrometry experiments showed the existence of a pattern of amide bond cleavage for the different identified peptide classes suggesting a selective proteolytic activity. For histatins, a predominance of cleavage at Arg, Lys and His residues was observed, while for basic proline-rich proteins, cleavage at Arg and Pro residues prevailed. In the case of acidic proline-rich proteins, a clearly predominance of cleavage of the Gln-Gly amide bond was evident.     

THE DISTRIBUTION FUNCTION OF RESIDUE-RESIDUE CONTACTS IN PROTEIN MOLECULES

In protein molecules each residue has a different ability to form contacts.In this paper,we calculated the number of contacts per residue and investigated the distribution of residue-residue contacts from 495 globular protein molecules using Contacts of Structural Units(CSU)software.It was found that the probability P(n)of amino acid residues having n pairs of contacts in all contacts fits Gaussian distribution very well.The distribution function of residue-residue contacts can be expressed as:P(n)=P_0+aexp[-b(n-n_c)~2].In our calculation,P_0=-0.06,α=11.4,b=-0.04 and n_c=9.0.According to distribution function,we found that those hydrophobic(H)residues including Leu,Val,Ile,Met,Phe,Tyr,Cys,and Trp residues have large values of the most probable number of contact n_c,and hydrophilic(P)residues including Ala,Gly,Thr, His,Glu,Gln,Asp,Asn,Lys,Ser,Arg,and Pro residues have the small ones.We also compare with Fauchere-Pliska hydrophobicity scale(FPH)and the most probable number of contact n_c for 20 amino acid residues,and find that there exists a linear relationship between Fauchere-Pliska hydrophobicity scale(FPH)and the most probable number of contact n_c, and it is expressed as:n_c=a+b×FPH,here α=8.87,and b=1.15.It is important to further explain protein folding and its stability from residue-residue contacts.     

Synthesis and screening of libraries of synthetic tripodal receptor molecules with three different amino acid or peptide arms: identification of iron binders

A novel selectively deprotectable triazacyclophane scaffold was used for the design and split-mix synthesis of two libraries of solid-phase bound tripodal synthetic receptors possessing three different amino acid or peptidic arms. In the synthesis of the first library, the two outer arms consisted of amino acid Ala, Arg, Asp, Gln, Gly, Lys, Phe, Ser, Tyr, or Val and the middle arm consisted of amino acid Asn, Glu, His, Leu, or Pro. The second library contained amino acid and/or (di)peptide arms. The arms were different in all library members. The first outer arm consisted of amino acid(s) Ala, Arg, Gln, Phe, or Ser, the second outer arm consisted of amino acid(s) Asp, Gly, Lys, Tyr, or Val, and the middle arm consisted of amino acid(s) Asn, Glu, His, Leu, or Pro, leading to a 27 000 member library of synthetic tripodal receptor molecules. In on-bead screening experiments, a remarkable selectivity of some library members for Fe(3+) was observed and decoding of their structures by Edman degradation revealed consensus sequences with structural resemblance to non-heme iron proteins.     

Retention behavior of peptides in hydrophilic-interaction chromatography

Selected hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC) columns packed with bare silica, bridge-ethyl hybrid silica, or an amide sorbent chemistry were utilized for an investigation of chromatographic behavior and separation selectivity of tryptic peptides. Retention model was proposed allowing for retention prediction of peptides with correlation coefficient R(2)~0.92-0.97 for various columns. The values of optimized amino acid retention coefficients were compared to those obtained for reversed-phase liquid chromatography (Gilar et al., Anal. Chem. 2010, 82, 265-275) and used to elucidate the impact of different amino acid on peptide HILIC retention. In contrast to reversed-phase chromatography, where presence of Phe, Trp, Ile, and Leu amino acid residues in sequence strongly promoted, and presence of hydrophilic His, Lys and Arg residues strongly reduced peptide retention, the effects of these amino acid residues in HILIC were opposite (His, Lys and Arg promote, Phe, Trp, Ile and Leu demote peptide retention in HILIC). Retention coefficient optimized for pH experiments illustrated the impact of silanols on HILIC retention.     

Defining intrinsic hydrophobicity of amino acids' side chains in random coil conformation. Reversed-phase liquid chromatography of designed synthetic peptides vs. random peptide data sets

The two leading RP-HPLC approaches for deriving hydrophobicity values of amino acids utilize either sets of designed synthetic peptides or extended random datasets often extracted from proteomics experiments. We find that the best examples of these two methods provide virtually identical results--with exception of Lys, Arg, and His. The intrinsic hydrophobicity values of the remaining residues as determined by Kovacs et al. (Biopolymers 84 (2006) 283) correlates with an R(2)-value of 0.995+ against amino acid retention coefficients from our Sequence Specific Retention Calculator model (Anal. Chem. 78 (2006) 7785). This novel finding lays the foundation for establishing consensus amino acids hydrophobicity scales as determined by RP-HPLC. Simultaneously, we find the assignment of hydrophobicity values for charged residues (Lys, Arg and His at pH 2) is ambiguous; their retention contribution is strongly affected by the overall peptide hydrophobicity. The unique behavior of the basic residues is related to the dualistic character of the RP peptide retention mechanism, where both hydrophobic and ion-pairing interactions are involved. We envision the introduction of "sliding" hydrophobicity scales for charged residues as a new element in peptide retention prediction models. We also show that when using a simple additive retention prediction model, the "correct" coefficient value optimization (0.98+ correlation against values determined by synthetic peptide approach) requires a training set of at least 100 randomly selected peptides.     

Structure-activity relationships of neuromedin U. IV. Absolute requirement of the arginine residue at position 7 of dog neuromedin U-8 for contractile activity

To examine the role of both Arg residues at positions 5 and 7 of dog neuromedin U-8 (d-NMU-8; pGlu1-Phe-Leu-Phe-Arg5-Pro-Arg7-Asn8-NH2) for smooth muscle contractile activity on isolated chicken crop, d-NMU-8 analogs were synthesized where either Arg residue was systematically replaced by various amino acids [X: Ala, Thr, Glu, Gln, Lys, Orn, His, citrulline (Cit) or homoarginine (Har)]. All [X5]-d-NMU-8, except for [Glu5]- and [Des-Arg5]-d-NMU-8, were full agonists, although their affinities to NMU receptors were decreased. No [X7]-d-NMU-8 showed contractile activity even at concentrations of 10(-5) mol/l, except for [Har7]-d-NMU-8, which retained weak biological activity. These analogs had no antagonistic activity against porcine neuromedin U-8 (p-NMU-8). The results revealed that Arg7 of d-NMU-8 is indispensable for receptor binding and activation to induce smooth muscle contraction, and the guanidino group of the side chain at position 7, but not at position 5, is strictly recognized by NMU receptors in the chicken crop.     

Visual detection of arginine,histidine and lysine using quercetin-functionalized gold nanoparticles

We report on the use of quercetin-functionalized gold nanoparticles (QC-AuNPs) as a colorimetric probe for the amino acids arginine (Arg), histidine (His) and lysine (Lys). The method is based on the aggregation of the QC-AuNPs that is caused by these amino acids and leads to a visually detectable color change from red to blue. The absorption maxima shift from 525 nm to 702, 693, and 745 nm, respectively. Aggregations are confirmed by dynamic light scattering (DLS) and transmission electron microscopic techniques (TEM). The effects of the QC concentration, temperature and reaction time for the preparation of QC-Au NPs were tested. Other amino acids do not interfere. Under the optimal conditions, linear relationships exist between the absorption ratios at 702/525 nm (for Arg), 693/525 nm (for His), and 745/525 nm (for Lys) over the concentrations ranges from 2.5–1,250 μM (Arg) and 1–1,000 μM (His and Lys), respectively. The respective limits of detection are 0.04, 0.03, and 0.02 μM. The method provides a useful tool for the rapid visual and instrumental determination of the three amino acids.

We report the use of quercetin as novel reagent for preparation and functionalization of gold nanoparticles to colorimetric sensing of three aminoacids (arginine, histidine and lysine). This is based on the aggregation of QC-AuNPs induced by three aminoacids.

     

Translational diffusion constants of the amino acids: measurement by NMR and their use in modeling the transport of peptides

In this work, the translational self-diffusion constants, DT's, of 12 amino acids (Ala, Arg, Asn, Asp, Cys, Glu, His, Ile, Lys, Met, Phe, and Ser) are measured by field gradient NMR and extrapolated to infinite dilution. The experiments were carried out in D2O at 298 K at pD approximately =3.5 in 50 mM sodium phosphate buffer. Of these 12 amino acids, 6 are being reported for the first time (Asp, Cys, Glu, His, Lys, and Met) and the remaining 6 (Ala, Arg, Asn, Ile, Phe, and Ser) are compared with DT's from the literature. When corrected for differences in solvent viscosity and temperature, the discrepancy between DT's measured in the present work and those reported previously is always <8%, which is reasonable given the range of values reported previously by different groups. With the present work, DT's for all of the amino acids are now available. These diffusion constants are then used in modeling studies of the diffusion and free solution electrophoretic mobility, mu, of several model peptides. For this set of peptides, it is shown that modeling using revised input parameters results in improved agreement between model and experimental mobilities.     

Investigation of the interactions between ginsenosides and amino acids by mass spectrometry and theoretical chemistry

In order to evaluate the essence of the interactions of ginsenosides and proteins which are composed by α-amino acids, electrospray ionization mass spectrometry was employed to study the noncovalent interactions between ginsenosides (Rb₂, Rb₃, Re, Rg₁ and Rh₁) and 18 kinds of α-amino acids (Asp, Glu, Asn, Phe, Gln, Thr, Ser, Met, Trp, Val, Gly, Ile, Ala, Leu, Pro, His, Lys and Arg). The 1:1 and 2:1 noncovalent complexes of ginsenosides and amino acids were observed in the mass spectra. The dissociation constants for the noncovalent complexes were directly calculated based on peak intensities of ginsenosides and the noncovalent complexes in the mass spectra. Based on the dissociation constants, it can be concluded that the acidic and the basic amino acids, Asp, Glu, Lys and Arg, bound to ginsenosides more strongly than other amino acids. The experimental results were verified by theoretical calculations of parameters of noncovalent interaction between ginsenoside Re and Arg which served as a representative example. Two kinds of binding forms, “head–tail” (“H–T”) and “head–head” (“H–H”), were proposed to explain the interaction between ginsenosides and amino acids. And the interaction in “H–T” form was stronger than that in “H–H” form.     

Evaluating the Properties of Ginger Protease-Degraded Collagen Hydrolysate and Identifying the Cleavage Site of Ginger Protease by Using an Integrated Strategy and LC-MS Technology

(1) Methods: An integrated strategy, including in vitro study (degree of hydrolysis (DH) and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity) and in vivo study (absorption after oral administration in rats), was developed to evaluate the properties of the fish skin gelatin hydrolysates prepared using different proteases (pepsin, alkaline protease, bromelain, and ginger protease). Meanwhile, in order to identify the hydrolysis site of ginger protease, the peptides in the ginger protease-degraded collagen hydrolysate (GDCH) were comprehensively characterized by liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS) method. (2) Results: The GDCH exhibited the highest DH (20.37%) and DPPH radical scavenging activity (77.73%), and in vivo experiments showed that the GDCH was more efficiently absorbed by the gastrointestinal tract. Further oral administration experiments revealed that GDCH was not entirely degraded to free amino acids and can be partially absorbed as dipeptides and tripeptides in intact forms, including Pro-Hyp, Gly-Pro-Hyp, and X-Hyp-Gly tripeptides. LC-MS results determined the unique substrate specificity of ginger protease recognizing Pro and Hyp at the P₂ position based on the amino acids at the P₂ position from the three types of tripeptides (Gly-Pro-Y, X-Hyp-Gly, and Z-Pro-Gly) and 136 identified peptides (>4 amino acids). Interestingly, it suggested that ginger protease can also recognize Ala in the P₂ position. (3) Conclusions: This study comprehensively evaluated the properties of GDCH by combining in vitro and in vivo strategies, and is the first to identify the cleavage site of ginger protease by LC-MS technique. It provides support for the follow-up study on the commercial applications of ginger protease and bioactivities of the hydrolysate produced by ginger protease.     

Structural and energetic effects in the molecular recognition of protonated peptidomimetic bases by 18-crown-6

Absolute 18-crown-6 (18C6) affinities of nine protonated peptidomimetic bases are determined using guided ion beam tandem mass spectrometry techniques. The bases (B) included in this work are mimics for the n-terminal amino group and the side chains of the basic amino acids, i.e., the favorable sites for binding of 18C6 to peptides and proteins. Isopropylamine is chosen as a mimic for the n-terminal amino group, imidazole and 4-methylimidazole are chosen as mimics for the side chain of histidine (His), 1-methylguanidine is chosen as a mimic for the side chain of arginine (Arg), and several primary amines including methylamine, ethylamine, n-propylamine, n-butylamine, and 1,5-diamino pentane as mimics for the side chain of lysine (Lys). Theoretical electronic structure calculations are performed to determine stable geometries and energetics for neutral and protonated 18C6 and the peptidomimetic bases, as well as the proton bound complexes comprised of these species, (B)H(+)(18C6). The measured 18C6 binding affinities of the Lys side chain mimics are larger than the measured binding affinities of the mimics for Arg and His. These results suggest that the Lys side chains should be the preferred binding sites for 18C6 complexation to peptides and proteins. Present results also suggest that competition between Arg or His and Lys for 18C6 is not significant. The mimic for the n-terminal amino group exhibits a measured binding affinity for 18C6 that is similar to or greater than that of the Lys side chain mimics. However, theory suggests that binding to n-terminal amino group mimic is weaker than that to all of the Lys mimics. These results suggest that the n-terminal amino group may compete with the Lys side chains for 18C6 complexation.     

磷酸三乙胺-乙腈流动相体系反相分离2，4-二硝基氟苯-氨基酸衍生物

从两个方面改进了反相分离2,4-二硝基氟苯-氨基酸衍生物测定氨基酸的分析方法:一是使用高缓冲容量pH 2.75和6.50的磷酸三乙胺-乙腈流动相体系代替醋酸盐/乙腈流动相体系;另一个是强调了衍生反应的操作细节。以含精、丝、天冬、谷、苏、甘、丙、脯、组、蛋、缬、色、苯丙、亮、异亮、赖、酪氨酸注射液为目标试样,对方法进行认证,线性不低于0.9999(对谷氨酸、赖氨酸和酪氨酸不低于0.9998),准确度（回收率）为100±1%,精密度（RSD）低于0.5%,均优于以往的方法。方法适用于在一般液相色谱实验室进行氨基酸注射液和原料药的分析,无需专用氨基酸分析仪。     

Electron capture dissociation product ion abundances at the X amino acid in RAAAA-X-AAAAK peptides correlate with amino acid polarity and radical stability

We present mechanistic studies aimed at improving the understanding of the product ion formation rules in electron capture dissociation (ECD) of peptides and proteins in Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry. In particular, we attempted to quantify the recently reported general correlation of ECD product ion abundance (PIA) with amino acid hydrophobicity. The results obtained on a series of model H-RAAAAXAAAAK-OH peptides confirm a direct correlation of ECD PIA with X amino acid hydrophobicity and polarity. The correlation factor (R) exceeds 0.9 for 12 amino acids (Ile, Val, His, Asn, Asp, Glu, Gln, Ser, Thr, Gly, Cys, and Ala). The deviation of ECD PIA for seven outliers (Pro is not taken into consideration) is explained by their specific radical stabilization properties (Phe, Trp, Tyr, Met, and Leu) and amino acid basicity (Lys, Arg). Phosphorylation of Ser, Thr, and Tyr decreases the efficiency of ECD around phosphorylated residues, as expected. The systematic arrangement of amino acids reported here indicates a possible route toward development of a predictive model for quantitative electron capture/transfer dissociation tandem mass spectrometry, with possible applications in proteomics.     

Structural studies of the Maillard reaction products of a protein using ion trap mass spectrometry

The early stage products of the Maillard reaction of egg white lysozyme with D-glucose were studied. Incubation with D-glucose at 50 degrees C for 20 days caused reaction on the Lys and Arg residues of lysozyme as follows: all of the six Lys residues and 10 of the 11 Arg residues in lysozyme reacted with D-glucose; Arg 61 did not react with D-glucose. The Lys residues reacted with D-glucose with 1 mol of dehydration per mole of residue, and the Arg residues reacted with 2 mol of dehydration per mole of residue. The major constituent of the Amadori product with the epsilon-amino group of the Lys residue and the D-glucose was found to be the beta-pyranose form. The structure of the early stage product of the Maillard reaction of a protein with a sugar is the same as that of an amino acid with a sugar.     

Analysis of endoproteinase Arg C action on adrenocorticotrophic hormone by capillary electrophoresis and reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography.

The specificity and rate of cleavage of adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) peptide bonds by endoproteinase Arg C were analyzed using capillary electrophoresis (CE) and reversed-phase (C18) high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Acidic cleavage products were readily resolved by CE in uncoated capillaries using low ionic strength electrolytes. However, products predicted to have a net positive charge greater than 2 or more than 4 positively charged groups per peptide did not migrate out from the capillary at low ionic strength. Addition of salts and zwitterions to the electrolyte decreased capillary-peptide interactions such that all of the ACTH peptides examined were eluted with high efficiency separation by CE. Commercially obtained endoproteinase Arg C preparations exhibited peptidase activity at Lys-15-Lys16 and at Lys16-Arg17 in addition to the expected cleavage at Arg-X bonds. ACTH peptide bond cleavage rates for Arg8-Trp9, Arg17-Arg-18, Lys15-Lys16, and Lys16-Arg17 were 1.46, 0.096, 0.57, and 0.029 mumol min-1 mg-1 respectively. CE separations generally exhibited better resolution and were accomplished in shorter times than C18 HPLC separations. These properties make CE a particularly appropriate method for kinetic analysis of proteolytic enzyme action on peptide substrates.     

A Study of peptide-peptide interaction by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization

Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) mass spectrometry was used to study peptide-peptide interaction. The interaction was seen when 6-aza-2-thiothymine was used as a matrix (pH 5.4), but was disrupted with a more acidic matrix, alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamic acid (pH 2.0). In the present study, we show that dynorphin, an opioid peptide, and five of its fragments that contain two adjacent basic residues (Arg6-Arg7), all interact noncovalently with peptides that contain two to five adjacent acidic residues (Asp or Glu). Two other nonrelated peptides containing two (Arg6-Arg7) or three (Arg1-Lys2-Arg3) adjacent basic amino acid residues were studied and exhibited the same behavior. However, peptides containing adjacent Lys or His did not form noncovalent complexes with acidic peptides. The noncovalent bonding was sufficiently stable that digestion with trypsin only cleaved Arg and Lys residues that were not involved in hydrogen bonding with the acidic residues. In an equimolar mixture of dynorphin, dynorphin fragments (containing the motif RR), and an acidic peptide (minigastrin), the acidic peptide preferentially complexed with dynorphin. If the concentration of minigastrin was increased 10 fold, noncovalent interaction was seen with dynorphin and all its fragments containing the motif RR. In the absence of dynorphin, minigastrin formed noncovalent complexes with all dynorphin fragments. These findings suggest that conformation, equilibrium, and concentration do play a role in the occurrence of peptide-peptide interaction. Observations from this study include: (1) ionic bonds were not disrupted by enzymatic digests, (2) conformation and concentration influenced complex formation, and (3) the complex did not form with fragments of dynorphin or unrelated peptides that did not contain the motifs RR or RKR, nor with a fragment of dynorphin where Arg7 was mutated to a phenylalanine residue. These findings strongly suggest that peptide-peptide interaction does occur, and can be studied by MALDI if near physiologic pH is maintained.     

Sequence Elucidation of an Unknown Cyclic Peptide of High Doping Potential by ETD and CID Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Identification of an unknown substance without any information remains a daunting challenge despite advances in chemistry and mass spectrometry. However, an unknown cyclic peptide in a sample with very limited volume seized at a Pennsylvania racetrack has been successfully identified. The unknown sample was determined by accurate mass measurements to contain a small unknown peptide as the major component. Collision-induced dissociation (CID) of the unknown peptide revealed the presence of Lys (not Gln, by accurate mass), Phe, and Arg residues, and absence of any y-type product ion. The latter, together with the tryptic digestion results of the unusual deamidation and absence of any tryptic cleavage, suggests a cyclic structure for the peptide. Electron-transfer dissociation (ETD) of the unknown peptide indicated the presence of Gln (not Lys, by the unusual deamidation), Phe, and Arg residues and their connectivity. After all the results were pieced together, a cyclic tetrapeptide, cyclo[Arg-Lys-N(C₆H₉)Gln-Phe], is proposed for the unknown peptide. Observations of different amino acid residues from CID and ETD experiments for the peptide were interpreted by a fragmentation pathway proposed, as was preferential CID loss of a Lys residue from the peptide. ETD was used for the first time in sequencing of a cyclic peptide; product ions resulting from ETD of the peptide identified were categorized into two types and named pseudo-b and pseudo-z ions that are important for sequencing of cyclic peptides. The ETD product ions were interpreted by fragmentation pathways proposed. Additionally, multi-stage CID mass spectrometry cannot provide complete sequence information for cyclic peptides containing adjacent Arg and Lys residues. The identified cyclic peptide has not been documented in the literature, its pharmacological effects are unknown, but it might be a “designer” drug with athletic performance-enhancing effects.