MALDI-TOF-MS法对重组人内皮抑素蛋白分子质量测定

肿瘤的生长依赖于血管的生成,新生血管不仅为肿瘤生长提供必需的营养物质,而且为肿瘤细胞扩散提供了重要的途径。1997年哈佛大学的O'Reilly等发现了一种内源性新血管生成抑制因子内皮抑素(Endoscatin),显示出特异抑制激活的血管内皮细胞增殖和肿瘤新血管生成的生物学活性,其抗肿瘤作用具有高效、低毒、无耐药性的优点。目前,内皮抑素的研究引起了国内外广泛的兴趣,在美国已进行以安全性为目的的I期临床实验,国内也有多家公司对内皮抑素进行了抗肿瘤研究并申报一类新药。内皮抑素有望成为医治肿瘤而又没有化疗和放疗的毒副作用的一种新的治疗方法,但是否能作为药物应用于临床,尚需对内皮抑素的结构特点及抑制肿瘤和内皮细胞的作用机制等方面进行许多深入的研究。     

SPE – Microwave‐assisted extraction coupled system for the extraction of pesticides from water samples

SPE is a commonly applied technique for preconcentration of pesticides from water samples. Microwave‐assisted extraction (MAE) technique is the extraction applied for preconcentration of different compounds from solid samples. SPE coupled with MAE is capable of preconcentrating these compounds from water samples too. This investigation was aimed at improving the efficiency of atrazine, alachlor, and α‐cypermethrin pesticide extraction from the spiked water samples applying SPE followed by MAE. In this way, MAE served for elution of pesticides from C₁₈‐extraction disks with solvent heated by microwave energy. Various elution conditions were tested for their effects on the extraction efficiency of the SPE–MAE combined technique. Several parameters, such as elution solvent volume (mL), elution temperature (°C), and duration of elution (min), affect the extraction efficiency of the SPE–MAE coupled system and need to be optimized for the selected pesticides. In order to develop a mathematical model, 15 experiments were performed in the central composite design. The equation was then used to predict recoveries of the pesticides under specific experimental conditions. Optimization of microwave extraction was accomplished using the genetic algorithm approach. Best results were achieved using 20 mL of ethanol at 60°C. Optimal hold time was 5 min and 24 s. The SPE–MAE combination was also compared with the conventional SPE extraction technique with elution of a nonpolar or a moderately polar compound with nonpolar solvents.     

Analysis of organic pollutants in water at trace levels using fully automated solid-phase extraction coupled to high-performance liquid chromatography

Summary A method has been developed for the determination of trace levels of 32 pesticides, 19 explosives and 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) in water in three individual steps. Solid-phase enrichment (SPE) is coupled to high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with a fully automated system. The organic pollutants are enriched on reusable cartridges packed with adsorbent materials: pesticides and explosives on a mixed bed of divinylbenzene-ethylvinylbenzene copolymers (LiChrolut EN^?) and perfluorinated polyethylene (PolyF^?), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons on C₁₈-modified silica (Zorbax^? ODS1). Thermally assisted desorption (TAD) has been shown to increase the recovery of analytes significantly. As all enriched analytes are transferred to the detector, only fifty millilitres of sample is needed for each single on-line analysis, compared with at least a litre for conventional methods. The separation of the enriched organic analytes is performed on specialized HPLC columns based on reversed-phase materials. The limits of detection of the system employed were found to be below 100 ng L⁻¹. Use of fluorescence detection for the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons resulted in limits of detection in the upper pg L⁻¹ range. Thek values, number of theoretical plates, the recovery rates and the limits of detection of this method for fast screening of organic pollutants from three fifty-millilitre aqueous samples are described. Presented at the 21^st ISC held in Stuttgart, Germany, 15^th–20^th September, 1996     

Ionization energy reductions in small 2,5-dihydroxybenzoic acid-proline clusters

The photoionization of (pro)(n)DHB (pro = proline, DHB = 2,5-dihydroxybenzoic acid, n = 0, 1, 2 or 4) clusters was studied both experimentally and computationally. Experimentally the (pro)(n)DHB clusters are generated in the gas phase by laser desorption and supersonic jet entrainment. The photoionization thresholds are then determined by the mass-selective measurement of both one- and two-color photoionization efficiency curves. These experiments demonstrate that the ionization energies (IEs) of the (pro)(n)DHB clusters are substantially reduced in comparison with the IE of free DHB. Computational studies of the (pro)(n)DHB clusters provide insights into the mechanism of IE reduction. For the (pro)DHB system the IE reduction results from spin delocalization in the ion state of the cluster. In contrast, for the (pro)(2)DHB and (pro)(4)DHB clusters the IE reduction results from an inductive delocalization of electron density from pro to DHB in the ground state of the cluster. This latter effect, which is a result of the specific hydrogen-bonding interactions occurring in the mixed clusters, leads to IE reductions of >1 eV. Finally, determination of the energetics of the (pro)(2)DHB radical cation demonstrate that the DHB-to-proline proton transfer reaction is a barrierless, exoergic process in the ion state and that energetic demands for cluster dissociation to protonated (pro)(2) plus a deprotonated DHB radical are substantially lower than those for cluster dissociation to (pro)(2) plus DHB(+*). Cumulatively, these studies provide new energetic and mechanistic insights into both primary and secondary MALDI ionization processes.     

Microscale sample deposition onto hydrophobic target plates for trace level detection of neuropeptides in brain tissue by MALDI-MS

A sample preparation method that combines a modified target plate with a nanoscale reversed-phase column (nanocolumn) was developed for detection of neuropeptides by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS). A gold-coated MALDI plate was modified with an octadecanethiol (ODT) self-assembled monolayer to create a hydrophobic surface that could concentrate peptide samples into a approximately 200-500-microm diameter spot. The spot sizes generated were comparable to those obtained for a substrate patterned with 200-microm hydrophilic spots on a hydrophobic substrate. The sample spots on the ODT-coated plate were 100-fold smaller than those formed on an unmodified gold plate with a 1-microl sample and generated 10 to 50 times higher mass sensitivity for peptide standards by MALDI-TOF MS. When the sample was deposited on an ODT-modified plate from a nanocolumn, the detection limit for peptides was as low as 20 pM for 5-microl samples corresponding to 80 amol deposited. This technique was used to analyze extracts of microwave-fixed tissue from rat brain striatum. Ninety-eight putative peptides were detected including several that had masses matching neuropeptides expected in this brain region such as substance P, rimorphin, and neurotensin. Twenty-three peptides had masses that matched peaks detected by capillary liquid chromatography with electrospray ionization MS.     

Profiling and comprehensive expression analysis of ABC transporter solute-binding proteins of Bacillus subtilis membrane based on a proteomic approach

We analyzed ABC transporter solute-binding proteins (SBPs) of the Bacillus subtilis membrane using a proteomic approach. We prepared a washed cell membrane fraction that was insoluble in 134 mM nondetergent sulfobetaine and then extracted proteins using mixtures of detergents in a stepwise manner. The membrane proteins were resolved by three two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (2-D PAGE) or two one-dimensional (1-D) PAGE procedures, electroblotted, and digested in the presence of 5% or 80% acetonitrile. Thereafter, matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flight-mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) identified 637 proteins corresponding to 15.9% of the total cellular proteins. We predicted that among these, 256 were membrane proteins, 101 were lipoproteins or secretory proteins and 280 were soluble proteins containing peripheral proteins that function in both the cytoplasm and the cell membrane such as SecA and FtsY. Among the 637 proteins, we identified 30 SBPs among 38 importers predicted by a bioinformatic search of the genome. We confirmed expression of the genes for the 30 SBPs using DNA microarray analysis. We compared the 2-D gel separation profiles of submembrane fractions solubilized by 1% n-dodecyl-beta-D-maltoside from cells cultured on Luria Bertani (LB), S7, and S7 medium without glutamate as well as DNA microarray data on LB and S7. The results suggested that YcdH, YtmK and YurO are binding proteins for Mn(++), glutamate and glucose, respectively, and that YqiX and YxeM are binding proteins for amino acids (tryptophan in S7 medium).     

In-gel deglycosylation of sodiumdodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis-separated glycoproteins for carbohydrate estimation by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry

Mass determination by mass spectrometric methods (electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS), matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOFMS)) of sodiumdodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE)-separated proteins is a well known procedure and reliable protocols are available. In our efforts to use the established methods to determine the molecular mass of the disulfide bridged, heterodimeric glycoprotein GP3 and to determine the carbohydrate content of each protein subunit we developed an in-gel chemical deglycosylation method. For this purpose we established experimental conditions that allow maximum extraction of the high molecular mass protein subunits and developed a routine method to apply the HF-pyridine deglycosylation protocol to proteins isolated from polyacrylamide gel pieces. The novel protocol and extraction procedure described can be used to analyze O-glycosylated proteins up to 150 kDa after SDS-PAGE separation.     

Effects of different alkali metal ions on the cationization of poly(ethylene glycol)s in matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry: a new selectivity parameter

The cationization of poly(ethylene glycol)s, PEG 4000 and PEG 6000, under matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization conditions was studied by using different concentration ratios of the sodium ion, as the reference ion, and another alkali metal ion (Li(+), K(+), Rb(+), Cs(+)). A linear correlation was found between the intensity ratio of the sodiated PEGs and PEGs cationized with alkali metal ions versus the initial concentration ratio of sodium and alkali metal ions. The slopes of these straight lines are proposed as a novel selectivity ratio for the ionization process. The intensity distribution of the cationized PEGs was also investigated. It was found that the cationized oligomers follow Poisson statistics. The M(n) and M(w) values were also evaluated. An explanation for the observed effects is given.     

Understanding the conformational dependence of spin-spin coupling constants: through-bond and through-space J(31P,31P) coupling in tetraphosphane-1,4-diides [M(L)x]2[P4R4

The characteristic dependence of J(31P,31P) spin-spin coupling constants of alkali metal tetraphosphane-1,4-diides on structure and composition has been analyzed by density functional methods. The computations confirm that the structure of the contact ion pairs is conserved in solution. Calculations on model systems M2P4H4, on naked P4H4(2-) anions, and on models including point charges, show that the role of the cations is mainly structural and to a smaller extent electrostatic. Three of the four J(P,P) coupling constants depend characteristically on the conformation of the anion, which in turn is determined by the substituents R and by cation-anion interactions. Several couplings exhibit a large through-space component and are thus strongly dependent on the relative orientation of nonbonding electron pairs on the phosphorus atoms involved. This is shown by visualization of coupling pathways using the recently introduced coupling energy density (CED), in combination with the electron localization function (ELF).     

Ring strain energies: substituted rings, norbornanes, norbornenes and norbornadienes

Ring strain energies (RSEs) are predicted using homodesmotic reactions at the B3LYP/6-31G^* level of theory. Substituents are conserved in the acyclic reference and any difference in energy between the ring and the acyclic reference corresponds exclusively to RSE. Small rings are stabilized by alkyl substituents and this stabilization decreases as the size of the ring increases. There is a destabilization of medium sized rings. Greater stabilization is found upon alkyl substitution at a double bond in an unsaturated ring and this stabilization decreases as ring size increases. The effects of cis-1,2-disubstitution on RSEs have been evaluated and indicate stabilization for both small and medium sized rings. RSEs of saturated and unsaturated polycyclic systems agree well with the RSEs derived from experimental thermochemical data. RSEs are reported for substituted norbornanes, norbornenes, and norbornadienes to complement experimental studies.