Reversed-phase liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry of site-specific chemical modifications in intact immunoglobulin molecules and their fragments

The employment of a diphenyl column for the separation of intact monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) and their fragments by reversed-phase HPLC is discussed as a novel approach for the characterization of chemical modifications in a site-specific manner. Chromatographic separation of the intact mAb07 on the diphenyl support resulted in the separation of the cysteinylated from the non-cysteinylated mAb. A detected mass increase of 119 Da by mass spectrometric sequence analysis confirmed the cysteinylation. Furthermore, the diphenyl column resolved site-specific oxidation of five different methionine residues in the heavy chain (HC) of mAb03. Oxidized mAb03 HC eluted as five distinct peaks with shorter retention times than the corresponding peak representing unoxidized HC. Analysis of these peaks by in-line mass spectrometric analysis confirmed the site-specific oxidation of five different methionine residues. In another application, the diphenyl column was able to resolve free sulfhydryl groups containing Fc and Fab fragments, which were generated by limited proteolysis with endoproteinase Lys-C. The free sulfhydryl groups were responsible for a mass shift of approximately 2 Da. Their identity was further confirmed by N-ethylmaleimide labeling, which caused a shift in their chromatographic retention and led to a mass increase of 250 Da. This is the first report about chromatographic resolution on a reversed-phase column that results in site-specific separation of chemical modifications in intact mAb and mAb fragments.     

The effect of histidine oxidation on the dissociation patterns of peptide ions

Oxidative modifications to amino acid side chains can change the dissociation pathways of peptide ions, although these variations are most commonly observed when cysteine and methionine residues are oxidized. In this work we describe the very noticeable effect that oxidation of histidine residues can have on the dissociation patterns of peptide ions containing this residue. A common product ion spectral feature of doubly charged tryptic peptides is enhanced cleavage at the C-terminal side of histidine residues. This preferential cleavage arises as a result of the unique acid/base character of the imidazole side chain that initiates cleavage of a proximal peptide bond for ions in which the number of protons does not exceed the number of basic residues. We demonstrate here that this enhanced cleavage is eliminated when histidine is oxidized to 2-oxo-histidine because the proton affinity and nucleophilicity of the imidazole side chain are lowered. Furthermore, we find that oxidation of histidine to 2-oxo-histidine can cause the misassignment of oxidized residues when more than one oxidized isomer is simultaneously subjected to tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS). These spectral misinterpretations can usually be avoided by using multiple stages of MS/MS (MS(n)) or by specially optimized liquid chromatographic separation conditions. When these approaches are not accessible or do not work, N-terminal derivatization with sulfobenzoic acid avoids the problem of mistakenly assigning oxidized residues.     

Apolar chromatography on Sephadex LH-20 combined with high-speed counter-current chromatography. High yield strategy for structurally closely related analytes-Destruxin derivatives from Metarhizium anisopliae as a case study

A novel high yield isolation procedure for lipophilic cyclic peptide derivatives is presented. Destruxin (dtx) A, B, D, E, and E-diol retrieval from Metarhizium anisopliae culture broth was achieved with a three-step purification protocol. After liquid-liquid extraction column chromatography over Sephadex LH-20 served as enrichment step. High-speed counter-current chromatography (HSCCC) was used for the final purification. Within the first chromatographic step dtx D and dtx E-diol were separated in purities exceeding 90%. The separation of dtx A, B, and E was achieved from an enriched Sephadex LH-20 fraction by a HSCCC protocol using light petroleum-ethyl acetate-methanol-water = 2:5:2:5 (v/v) as eluent system. These derivatives were obtained in purities above 98% and total yields exceeding 40%.     

Development of a peptide mapping procedure to identify and quantify methionine oxidation in recombinant human alpha1-antitrypsin

A peptide mapping procedure was developed to identify and quantify methionine oxidation in recombinant human alpha1-antitrypsin. Due to the protein's complex structural biochemistry, chromatographic analysis of methionine containing digest peptides was a significant challenge. However, by using a combination of mass spectrometry, protein engineering, and high-temperature reversed-phase liquid chromatography, we were able to identify methionine residues that are susceptible to oxidation by hydrogen peroxide. and quantify their reactivity. Our results show that five of the protein's 10 methionine residues are susceptible to oxidation at neutral pH, four of which are localized to the active site region.     

Advantages of derivatization by osmium tetroxide and 2,2'-bipyridine for matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization post-source decay fragment ion analysis of peptides

Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization--post-source decay (MALDI-PSD) fragment ion analysis is frequently used for peptide sequence determination. PSD fragmentation is often changed or improved in terms of, e.g., sequence coverage, after derivatization. In this work, the influence of modification by an osmium tetroxide-bipyridine reagent (Os,bipy) on the MALDI-PSD behaviour of peptides is studied. The reagent modifies peptides specifically at tryptophan residues and oxidizes methionine to methionine sulfone and cysteine to cysteic acid. As a result the masses of some of the fragments are specifically shifted in case of peptides containing a methionine by +32 Da and, in cases of peptides containing a cysteine residue, by +48 Da. In addition, due to the change in protonation properties of a peptide after oxidation, fragments containing cysteic acid are in most cases totally suppressed. This effect significantly facilitates peptide sequence determination. Improvement of MALDI-TOFMS and PSD analysis after the reaction with Os,bipy is demonstrated for examples involving derivatives of humanin, a novel neuroprotective peptide.     

Mesoporous layer-by-layer ordered nanohybrids of layered double hydroxide and layered metal oxide: highly active visible light photocatalysts with improved chemical stability

Mesoporous layer-by-layer ordered nanohybrids highly active for visible light-induced O(2) generation are synthesized by self-assembly between oppositely charged 2D nanosheets of Zn-Cr-layered double hydroxide (Zn-Cr-LDH) and layered titanium oxide. The layer-by-layer ordering of two kinds of 2D nanosheets is evidenced by powder X-ray diffraction and cross-sectional high resolution-transmission electron microscopy. Upon the interstratification process, the original in-plane atomic arrangements and electronic structures of the component nanosheets remain intact. The obtained heterolayered nanohybrids show a strong absorption of visible light and a remarkably depressed photoluminescence signal, indicating an effective electronic coupling between the two component nanosheets. The self-assembly between 2D inorganic nanosheets leads to the formation of highly porous stacking structure, whose porosity is controllable by changing the ratio of layered titanate/Zn-Cr-LDH. The resultant heterolayered nanohybrids are fairly active for visible light-induced O(2) generation with a rate of ～1.18 mmol h(-1) g(-1), which is higher than the O(2) production rate (～0.67 mmol h(-1) g(-1)) by the pristine Zn-Cr-LDH material, that is, one of the most effective visible light photocatalysts for O(2) production, under the same experimental condition. This result highlights an excellent functionality of the Zn-Cr-LDH-layered titanate nanohybrids as efficient visible light active photocatalysts. Of prime interest is that the chemical stability of the Zn-Cr-LDH is significantly improved upon the hybridization, a result of the protection of the LDH lattice by highly stable titanate layer. The present findings clearly demonstrate that the layer-by-layer-ordered assembly between inorganic 2D nanosheets is quite effective not only in improving the photocatalytic activity of the component semiconductors but also in synthesizing novel porous LDH-based hybrid materials with improved chemical stability.     

Oxidation of methionine residues in aqueous solutions: free methionine and methionine in granulocyte colony-stimulating factor

The free energy barriers and a mechanism of the oxidation of the amino acid methionine in water and in granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) are analyzed via combined quantum mechanical and molecular mechanical (QM/MM) methods, constrained molecular dynamics, and committor probability calculations. The computed free energy barrier of free methionine amino acid is very close to the measured value (14.7 +/- 1.2 versus 15.5 +/- 0.02 kcal/mol). The reaction coordinate was found to be the difference between the O-O bond of H2O2 and the S-O bond, where the S is the sulfur atom of the methionine residue. It was confirmed by computing the committor probability distribution and the distribution of constrained forces that this coordinate is not coupled to the activation of other degrees of freedom. The computed free energies of the oxidation of methionine residues in G-CSF indicate that the protein environment has insignificant effects on the reaction barriers of oxidation. This result further validates our proposal that the access of solvent to methionine sites, as measured by the two-shell water coordination number, governs the kinetics of the oxidation reaction of methionine groups in a protein molecule. We also found that the number of hydrogen bonds between the distal oxygen of H2O2 and the water molecules near the methionine increases along the reaction coordinate as oxidation progresses, indicating that the charge separation developed during the oxidation by H2O2 is stabilized by specific interactions with water molecules, such as hydrogen bonding.     

Protein identification from two-dimensional gel electrophoresis by connecting ZipTip with a home-assembled nanoflow system

Mass spectrometry (MS) is a powerful technique for protein identification in proteomic research. Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) combined with MS is a significant method for protein separation and identification. For protein identification, peptide sequencing is usually carried out by an effective but expensive nano-flow liquid chromatographic system combined to tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS). However, protein identification based on such method is time-consuming, and contamination may occur as a result of column overloading. In this study, we establish an alternative nanoscale system for protein identification using MS/MS. The system consists of several devices that can be purchased from commercial sources and can be connected to an electrospray ionization quadrupole-time of flight (ESI-Q-TOF) MS in order to analyze proteins from 2D gels. This inexpensive strategy provides an attractive alternative method for rapid identification of proteins using a nanospray source. In addition, the device is disposable so that contamination is avoided. It is shown that peptide sequencing based on this device using ESI-Q-TOF MS is accomplished within 10 min.     

Determination of hexamethylphosphoramide and other highly polar phosphoramides in water samples using reversed-phase liquid chromatography/electrospray ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry

The widely used solvent hexamethylphosphoramide (HMPA) and its biological (metabolic) and chemical (abiotic) phosphoramide-based oxidation products may cause adverse health effects through occupational exposure and intake of contaminated groundwater. However, no current methods exist for the separation and the detection of the many polar HMPA oxidation products. Thus, we developed a new RPLC/ESI-TOF-MS method and further investigated the chromatographic performances of two columns (i.e., XTerra Phenyl and XBridge Phenyl). In addition, the impact of (forced) acid hydrolysis for optimized chromatographic performance of the XTerra Phenyl column is investigated. The XTerra Phenyl column showed the best separation of the less polar major metabolic oxidation products pentamethylphosphoramide and hydroxymethyl-pentamethylphosphoramide, however, only after treating the column with formic acid (acid-treated). The XTerra column separated most of the investigated HMPA oxidation products (11 of 16 compounds) in a single chromatographic run. In contrast, the XBridge Phenyl column requires one method for the less polar and another method for the more polar oxidation products. However, this results in an overall better separation performance of the XBridge Phenyl column, especially for the less polar major abiotic oxidation products hydroxymethyl-pentamethylphosphoramide and formyl-pentamethylphosphoramide, as well as for 11 highly polar oxidation products (R(S)>1.5). The RPLC/ESI-TOF-MS method presented and validated in this study is the first analytical method that can be used to separate and detect HMPA (LOD 0.10 μM without preconcentration) and all of its oxidation products.     

BN诱导BiOI富氧{110}面的暴露并增强其可见光催化氧化性能

Photocatalytic oxidation is a promising technology for governing emission of environmental pollutants and managing energy crisis. Typically, the photocatalytic performance of photocatalysts is highly dependent on the type of exposed crystal surfaces. As a semiconductor oxide photocatalyst, the different exposed crystal surfaces of bismuth oxyiodide (BiOI) exhibit different photocatalytic oxidation performances. In this study, we chose BiOI as the model material and provided a novel method to improve the photocatalytic oxidation performance by regulating the main exposed crystal facets. Using boron nitride (BN) nanosheets as the templates, two-dimensional/two-dimensional (2D/2D) BiOI/BN nanocompounds were fabricated via an in situ growth method. Owing to the electrostatic interaction, the positively charged BiOI {001} facets prefer to contact the negatively charged BN {001} facet, thus inducing the exposure of BiOI {110} facets. This was identified via X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy analyses. Compared with BiOI {001} facets, there were more lattice oxygen atoms in the BiOI {110} facets. Thus, the exposure of BiOI {110} facets would promote more surface lattice oxygen atoms exposed on the surface of BiOI, which was confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and density functional theory calculations. To evaluate the photocatalytic oxidation performance of BiOI/BN, the photocatalytic NO oxidation reaction was tested under visible light irradiation (λ > 420 nm). Among all the nanocompounds, the BiOI/BN-1.0:1.4 nanocompound exhibited the best NO oxidation ratio of 44.2%, which was almost 30 times higher than that of pristine BiOI (1.4%). The enhanced photocatalytic activity could be attributed to the following two aspects. One, the successful combination of BN effectively promoted the separation of photogenerated carriers, which was identified by steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence spectra, transient photocurrent responses, and electrochemical impedance spectra. Two, benefiting from the introduction of BN nanosheets, BiOI tends to mainly expose the oxygen-rich {110} facets. As a result, the content of O on the BiOI surface increased from 38.3% to 46.6%. Thus, NO preferred to adsorb on the {110} facets of BiOI nanosheets, which was confirmed by theoretical and experimental results. More importantly, the adsorbed NO spontaneously combined with the lattice oxygen atom of the BiOI (110) surface to form nitrogen dioxide (NO₂). These findings can provide a novel strategy to tune exposed oxygen-rich facets by constructing 2D/2D photocatalysts for ensuring efficient photocatalytic oxidation performance.      

Invetigations into the use of an auxiliary metal ion for indirect amperometri detection

Summary A method for determination of metal ions subsequent to separation by ion chromatography has previously been developed. The method is based on Indirect Amperometric Detection whereby the decrease in the oxidation current, due to a dithiocarbamate ligand added post column, is monitored. Upon elution from the chromatographic column the metal ions are complexed by the ligand. As the complexes formed are electroinactive at the applied potential, the background current decreases according to the metal ion concentration. The method developed in this work involves addition to the reagent of Zn(II) as a auxiliary metal ion to displace the analyte metals from the chromatographic eluent ligand complexes after separation. Sodium bis(2-hydroxy-ethyl) dithiocarbamate was used as the postcolumn derivatising reagent. The addition of Zn(II) to the reagent causes some unforeseen behaviour in the chromatographic system.     

A Role for Neuropeptides in UVB-Induced Systemic Immunosuppression

The aim of this study was to investigate the possible role of sensory nerves in UV light-induced systemic immunomodulation. Contact hypersensitivity to the low molecular weight compound picrylchloride was used as a model for cellular immunity that can be suppressed by low (i.e. suberythemal) doses of UV light even after exposure at a distant locus (i.e. systemic immunosuppression). In sensory nerve-depleted mice, achieved by two subcutaneous injections with the neurotoxin capsaicin before the age of 4 weeks, UV light exposure failed to inhibit contact hypersensitivity responses to picrylchloride. This indicates that sensory nerves are at least partially involved in the induction of systemic immunosuppression by UV light. In order to analyze whether sensory neuropeptides, such as calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) and tachykinins, are involved in UV light-induced systemic immunosuppression, mice were pretreated with selective antagonists prior to each UV light exposure. These experiments indicated that CGRP but not the tachykinins plays a crucial role in the UV light-induced systemic immunosuppression.     

Determination of protein oxidation by mass spectrometry and method transfer to quality control

Characterization and quantitative analysis of oxidation plays an important role in biopharmaceutical development. This study demonstrates an approach to the assessment of susceptible to oxidation methionine residues in monoclonal antibodies and recombinant proteins. A method for the determination of oxidation levels by peptide mapping with mass spectrometric (MS) detection is described and its advantages compared to the UV detection are presented. Good linearity and reproducibility for determination of oxidation with MS detection are demonstrated (R2 > 0.99; RSDs of 4-9%). Aspects of method transfer to quality control group (QC) are discussed. As well, a quick and easy flow injection/MS method is proposed to substitute for peptide map analysis. Peptide coverage, linearity, reproducibility, robustness, sensitivity and quantitative oxidation results are compared for the flow injection/MS and LC/MS approaches.     

Alternative high-performance liquid chromatographic peptide separation and purification concept using a new mixed-mode reversed-phase/weak anion-exchange type stationary phase

This article describes a new complementary peptide separation and purification concept that makes use of a novel mixed-mode reversed-phase/weak anion-exchange (RP/WAX) type stationary phase. The RP/WAX is based on N-(10-undecenoyl)-3-aminoquinuclidine selector, which is covalently immobilized on thiol-modified silica particles (5 microm, 100 A pore diameter) by radical addition reaction. Remaining thiol groups are capped by radical addition with 1-hexene. This newly developed separation material contains two distinct binding domains in a single chromatographic interactive ligand: a lipophilic alkyl chain for hydrophobic interactions with lipophilic moieties of the solute, such as in the reversed-phase chromatography, and a cationic site for anion-exchange chromatography with oppositely charged solutes, which also enables repulsive ionic interactions with positively charged functional groups, leading to ion-exclusion phenomena. The beneficial effect that may result from the combination of the two chromatographic modes is exemplified by the application of this new separation material for the chromatographic separation of the N- and C-terminally protected tetrapeptide N-acetyl-Ile-Glu-Gly-Arg-p-nitroanilide from its side products. Mobile phase variables have been thoroughly investigated to optimize the separation and to get a deeper insight into the retention and separation mechanism, which turned out to be more complex than any of the individual chromatography modes alone. A significant anion-exchange retention contribution at optimal pH of 4.5 was found only for acetate but not for formate as counter-ion. In loadability studies using acetate, peptide masses up to 200 mg could be injected onto an analytical 250 mm x 4 mm i.d. RP/WAX column (5 microm) still without touching bands of major impurity and target peptide peaks. The corresponding loadability tests with formate allowed the injection of only 25% of this amount. The analysis of the purified peptide by capillary high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-UV and HPLC-ESI-MS employing RP-18 columns revealed that the known major impurities have all been removed by a single chromatographic step employing the RP/WAX stationary phase. The better selectivity and enhanced sample loading capacity in comparison to RP-HPLC resulted in an improved productivity of the new purification protocol. For example, the yield of pure peptide per chromatographic run on RP/WAX phase was by a factor of about 15 higher compared to the standard gradient elution RP-purification protocol.     

磺基异硫氰酸苯酯化学辅助方法对新蛋白质进行从头测序

利用基质辅助激光解吸电离-串联飞行时间(MALDI-TOF-TOF)质谱结合磺基异硫氰酸苯酯化学辅助的方法对一种从拟青霉(Paecilomyces bainier)分离纯化到的新人参皂苷Rb1水解酶的部分肽段进行了从头测序. 共获得了这个新蛋白质8条肽段的序列, 一些磺化后信噪比非常低的肽段也获得了比较完整的序列. 同时通过从头测序分析确定了一对甲硫氨酸非氧化和氧化肽段的序列. 结果表明, 磺化后的肽段离子化效率大大增强, 在PSD(源后裂解)过程中只有肽键断裂产生的C端的碎片离子系列(y离子系列)出现在质谱图中, 图谱背景清晰, 信噪比高, 单纯的y离子系列使得图谱解析变得非常容易. 将这8条序列在NCBI(美国国立生物技术信息中心)数据库中进行BLAST(蛋白质序列比对工具)检索印证这种β-葡萄糖甘酶是一个新蛋白质, 发现的两条相对保守的序列为进一步研究奠定了基础.     

Visible-light Photochemistry and Phototoxicity of Thiarubrines

Abstract. Thiarubrines, a group of intensely red, sulfur-containing pigments produced by asteraceous plants, are photola-bile, yielding thiophenes and elemental sulfur upon exposure to UV or visible light. The mechanism of this light-induced conversion for thiarubrines A (la), B (lb) and D (lc), isolated from the roots of Ambrosia chamis-sonis (Asteraceae), was investigated. Visible-light irradiation of thiarubrines resulted in the formation of novel 2,6-dithiabicyclo[3.1.0]hex-3-ene polyyne photointerme-diates (photosulfides) that rapidly undergo desulfuriza-tion to yield thiophenes. Six photosulfides, photosulfides 3a and 3a' from thiarubrine A (la), photosulfides 3b and 3b' from thiarubrine B (lb) and photosulfides 3c and 3c' from thiarubrine D (lc) were characterized. Thiarubrine photointermediates are short-lived and unstable, with the photosulfides formed from thiarubrine A having a half-life of 12.3 min at room temperature. While the immediate fate of the extruded sulfur is unknown, we identified cyclooctasulfur (S₈) in photolysis solutions of thiarubrine A using electron impact mass spectrometry. Visible-light irradiation of Candida albicans cell suspensions treated with thiarubrine A led to a 99% decrease in cell viability, suggesting that the photosulfides, or other molecules generated by the exposure of thiarubrines to light, have significant toxicity.     

New Developments in Multidimensional Chromatography of Complex Polymers

Summary: Complex polymers are distributed in more than one direction of molecular heterogeneity. In addition to the molar mass distribution, they are frequently distributed with respect to chemical composition, functionality, and molecular heterogeneity. One approach for the analysis of the heterogeneity of complex polymers is their chromatographic separation by combining different separation mechanisms. A typical experimental protocol includes the separation of the sample according to composition to yield fractions that are chemically homogeneous. These fractions are transferred to a size‐selective separation method and analyzed with respect to molar mass. As a result of this two‐dimensional (2D) separation, information on both types of molecular heterogeneity is obtained. So far, 2D chromatography has been applied mostly to polymers that are soluble in organic solvents. There are several problems related to the use of aqueous mobile phases in polymer chromatography. These problems relate to the very polar or ionic character of the polymers and the experimental conditions, including the use of salt‐containing eluents. The present paper addresses the different parameters that influence the chromatographic experiments. For a model polymer system resulting from the grafting of methacrylic acid (MAA) onto poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG), i.e., PEG‐g‐PMAA, it will be shown that different chromatographic techniques including SEC, LC‐CC, and 2D chromatography, as well as coupled LC‐CC/FT‐IR can be used to analyze the molecular complexity of the copolymers.

LC‐CC/FT‐IR spectra of a PEG‐g‐PMAA sample as function of the elution volume.     

LSPR增强0D/2DCdS/MoO3-xS型异质结的构建及其可见光光催化活性研究

近年来,等离子体半导体光催化剂因其具有从可见光到近红外光的光响应而引起了人们极大的研究兴趣.含有丰富氧空位的非化学计量的氧化钼(MoO3-x)具有中心位于700 nm和尾部吸收拓展至2000 nm强的局域表面等离子体共振(LSPR)效应,因此,MoO3-x或将成为实现全光谱响应光催化制氢技术最有吸引力的候选材料之一.然而,单一MoO3-x中电荷载流子的复合快速.具有II型、Z型或S型异质结构的MoO3-x基复合光催化剂的构建被证明是同时实现拓展光吸收和分离光生载流子改善光催化析氢性能的有效策略.与传统的Ⅱ型异质结构相比,Z型或S型可在较高还原电位上进行水分解反应,又可以实现光生载流子的有效分离.相比于Z型,S型由于内部电场导致的半导体的能带玩去可以进一步缩短电子与空穴之间的迁移距离,从而导致光诱导载流子的更快分离.基于此,本文选择了与MoO3-x能带匹配的CdS半导体催化剂,通过简单的共沉淀法在具有LSPR效应的二维(2D)MoO3-x椭圆纳米片上生长零维(0D)CdS纳米粒子,制备了LSPR增强的0D/2D CdS/MoO3-xS型异质结.由于MoO3-x的引入,0D/2D CdS/MoO3-x复合材料展现出了一个因LSPR效应而具有的从600到1400 nm的尾部吸收,并且这种尾部吸收强度随着复合材料中MoO3-x含量的增加而增加.在可见光光催化反应中,CdS/MoO3-x复合材料的产氢速率为7.44 mmol·g^-1·h^-1,为单一CdS的10.3倍.当采用不同波段的单色光作为激发光源,在420,450和550 nm单色光的照射下,CdS/MoO3-x复合材料的产氢效率为15.7,10.9和193.4 mmol·g^-1,分别比CdS高6.8,5.0和3倍.当激发波长拓展至650 nm时,CdS/MoO3-x复合材料的产氢效率为6.83 mmol·g^-1,而CdS则不具有产氢活性,侧面体现了MoO3-x的LSPR效应在提升光解水产氢活性方向的有效作用.我们利用肖特基和固体紫外测试确定了CdS和MoO3-x的能带结构,并通过第一原理密度泛函理论模拟计算了CdS和MoO3-x的功函数,分别为4.07和7.56 eV,当这两个半导体接触时,MoO3-x的费米能级比CdS的更负,电子将从CdS迁移到MoO3-x,因此CdS和MoO3-x的能带将分别向上和向下弯曲,直到其费米能级达到平衡.这种向上和向下的带弯曲是S型结构的特征之一.XPS分析也证实在带正电荷的CdS和带负电荷的MoO3-x之间会产生内部电场,这也符合S型结构.此外,还利用电子自旋共振(ESR)进一步研究了CdS,MoO3-x和CdS/MoO3-x在光照下自由基的产生情况,CdS/MoO3-x产生的DMPO-·O2?和DMPO-·OH信号强度均强于CdS和MoO3-x,证明CdS/MoO3-x能产生更多的·O2?和·OH自由基.ESR结果还表明,在CdS/MoO3-x复合材料中光诱导电子和空穴仍然分别停留在CdS的导带和MoO3-x的价带中,CdS/MoO3-x复合材料的光诱导电荷分离机制将遵循S型机制,而不是传统的II型异质结.在光照下,内部电场和弯曲能带促使积聚在MoO3-x导带上的电子与CdS的空穴结合,在CdS的导带上留下具有较强氧化还原能力的电子参与光催化水还原反应,实现高效的光催化产氢.     

Top-down MS for rapid methionine oxidation site assignment in filgrastim

Protein therapeutics have emerged as a major new class of pharmaceuticals. One important shelf-life-limiting factor of biopharmaceuticals is methionine oxidation, and therefore, it is important that analytical methods are able to thoroughly characterize all possible oxidized variants. Here, we present a fast and sensitive method to perform online methionine oxidation site assignment using granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (filgrastim) as a model. The method is based on top-down MS using the all-ion fragmentation mode of the Exactive benchtop mass spectrometer. Conditions that provide information on the intact mass of the protein as well as on fragment ions that allow unambiguous site assignment of methionine oxidation in filgrastim variants as low as 0.12 % of total peak area in a chromatographic time scale were identified. Using this method, we performed methionine oxidation site assignment in H₂O₂-stressed filgrastim and in filgrastim which was stored at intended conditions, respectively. We show that the relative abundance of oxidation species observed in filgrastim stored under intended conditions differs strikingly from the oxidized species observed after H₂O₂ stress. Additionally, we report an oxidized filgrastim variant that has not been previously described in the literature.

Characterization and complete separation of major cyclolinopeptides in flaxseed oil by reversed‐phase chromatography

Organoleptic properties of flaxseed oil deteriorate during storage due to methionine oxidation in its major cyclolinopeptides. Cyclolinopeptide E was previously identified as being responsible for the manifestation of bitter taste with flaxseed oil ageing. We developed a chromatographic procedure to monitor the oxidation of major cyclic peptides in flaxseed oil. We also used liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry and high‐efficiency core–shell reversed‐phase sorbents to study the separation of cyclolinopeptides in detail. The Kinetex^TM family of stationary phases (C₈, C₁₈, phenyl‐hexyl) was tested, along with the standard porous Luna^TM C₁₈(2) media. We found that only the phenyl‐hexyl stationary phase allows for complete resolution of major cyclolinopeptides, thus permitting direct UV monitoring of degree of conversion for cyclolinopeptide B into C and L into E. We also report, for the first time, a significant effect of peak splitting for some methionine S‐oxide (Mso) containing cyclolinopeptides, which most likely appear due to diastereomerization. This results in poor separation efficiency for cyclolinopeptides F, G, and E, and gives baseline resolution of diastereomeric pairs for cyclolinopeptides I and P. Thus, a single oxidation of cyclolinopeptide N yields three distinct chromatographic peaks corresponding to cyclolinopeptide T (cyclo‐MsoLMPFFWV, reported for the first time) and pair of cyclolinopeptide I (cyclo‐MLMsoPFFWV) diastereomers.