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Prefractionation of complex mixtures of proteins derived from biological samples is indispensable for proteome analysis via top-down mass spectrometry (MS). Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE), which enables high-resolution protein separation based on molecular size, is a widely used technique in biochemical experiments and has the potential to be useful in sample fractionation for top-down MS analysis. However, the lack of a means to efficiently recover the separated proteins in-gel has always been a barrier to its use in sample prefractionation. In this study, we present a novel experimental workflow, called Passively Eluting Proteins from Polyacrylamide gels as Intact species for MS ("PEPPI-MS"), which allows top-down MS of PAGE-separated proteins. The optimization of Coomassie brilliant blue staining followed by the passive extraction step in the PEPPI-MS workflow enabled the efficient recovery of proteins, separated on commercial precast gels, from a wide range of molecular weight regions in under 10 min. Two-dimensional separation combining offline PEPPI-MS with online reversed-phase liquid chromatographic separation resulted in identification of over 1000 proteoforms recovered from the target region of the gel (≤50 kDa). Given the widespread availability and relatively low cost of traditional sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)-PAGE equipment, the PEPPI-MS workflow will be a powerful prefractionation strategy for top-down proteomics.

Schistosomes are blood flukes with specialised tissues and organs, each one playing a pivotal role in perpetuating the parasite life cycle. Herein, we describe a detailed methodology for preserving the proteome of adult Schistosoma mansoni worms during manual dissection for enrichment of tissues associated with the parasite's alimentary tract. We provide step‐by‐step directions for specimen storage and dissection while in preservative solution, tissue homogenisation, protein extraction and digestion using a methodology fully compatible with downstream quantitative liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry analysis. Our methodology uses label‐free and QconCAT‐based absolute quantification for detection of S. mansoni oesophageal gland products proposed as vaccine candidates. Through stabilisation of the proteome and minimising sample degradation during dissection our approach has allowed us to access the hidden proteome of target tissues not readily available from total lysates because of their small volume. This protocol can be replicated or adapted to other Schistosoma species lacking quantitative proteomics characterisation of specialised tissues for discovery of proteins with potential diagnostic and therapeutic utility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Schistosomes are blood flukes with specialised tissues and organs, each one playing a pivotal role in perpetuating the parasite life cycle. Herein, we describe a detailed methodology for preserving the proteome of adult Schistosoma mansoni worms during manual dissection for enrichment of tissues associated with the parasite's alimentary tract. We provide step‐by‐step directions for specimen storage and dissection while in preservative solution, tissue homogenisation, protein extraction and digestion using a methodology fully compatible with downstream quantitative liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry analysis. Our methodology uses label‐free and QconCAT‐based absolute quantification for detection of S. mansoni oesophageal gland products proposed as vaccine candidates. Through stabilisation of the proteome and minimising sample degradation during dissection our approach has allowed us to access the hidden proteome of target tissues not readily available from total lysates because of their small volume. This protocol can be replicated or adapted to other Schistosoma species lacking quantitative proteomics characterisation of specialised tissues for discovery of proteins with potential diagnostic and therapeutic utility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rationale: There is increasing interest in methods of direct analysis mass spectrometry that bypass complex sample preparation steps. Methods: One of the most interesting new ionisation methods is rapid evaporative ionisation mass spectrometry (REIMS) in which samples are vapourised and the combustion products are subsequently ionised and analysed by mass spectrometry (Synapt G2si). The only sample preparation required is the recovery of a cell pellet from a culture that can be analysed immediately. Results: We demonstrate that REIMS can be used to monitor the expression of heterologous recombinant proteins in Escherichia coli. Clear segregation was achievable between bacteria harvesting plasmids that were strongly expressed and other cultures in which the plasmid did not result in the expression of large amounts of recombinant product. Conclusions: REIMS has considerable potential as a near‐instantaneous monitoring tool for protein production in a biotechnology environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rationale: There is increasing interest in methods of direct analysis mass spectrometry that bypass complex sample preparation steps., Methods: One of the most interesting new ionisation methods is rapid evaporative ionisation mass spectrometry (REIMS) in which samples are vapourised and the combustion products are subsequently ionised and analysed by mass spectrometry (Synapt G2si). The only sample preparation required is the recovery of a cell pellet from a culture that can be analysed immediately., Results: We demonstrate that REIMS can be used to monitor the expression of heterologous recombinant proteins in Escherichia coli. Clear segregation was achievable between bacteria harvesting plasmids that were strongly expressed and other cultures in which the plasmid did not result in the expression of large amounts of recombinant product., Conclusions: REIMS has considerable potential as a near-instantaneous monitoring tool for protein production in a biotechnology environment., (© 2020 The Authors. Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

In addition to protein identification, protein quantification is becoming a key output of proteomic experiments. Although relative quantification techniques are more commonplace and central to discovery proteomics, most assays require absolute quantification. The growth in systems biology has also increased the demand for absolute protein abundance values for input into models. QconCATs are created by concatenating peptide sequences taken from the target proteins into artificial proteins. The QconCAT acts as a source of internal standards and enables parallel absolute quantification of multiple proteins. QconCATs are typically applied in targeted proteomic workflows and so benefit from the greater sensitivity and wider dynamic range of these approaches. In this chapter, we discuss the design, construction, expression, and deployment of a QconCAT and the resulting experiments required for multiplex absolute quantification.