Project description:Amyloidosis is a group of diseases caused by extracellular accumulation of fibrillar polypeptide aggregates. So far, diagnosis is performed by Congo red staining of tissue sections in combination with polarization microscopy. Subsequent identification of the causative protein by immunohistochemistry harbors some difficulties regarding sensitivity and specificity. Mass spectrometry-based approaches have been demonstrated to constitute a reliable method to supplement typing of amyloidosis, but still depend on Congo red staining. In the present study matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry imaging coupled with ion mobility separation (MALDI-IMS MSI) was used to investigate amyloid deposits in formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded tissue samples. We designed a peptide filter method enabling the identification of tryptic peptides derived from amyloidogenic and amyloid-associated proteins without additional tandem mass spectrometry. Utilizing the filter we found a universal peptide signature for amyloidoses independent from amyloid type and histoanatomical localization. Examining a validation cohort of cardiac biopsies including 66 amyloid and 31 non-amyloid cases, amyloidosis was diagnosed with high sensitivity and specificity. Furthermore, differences in the peptide composition of AL-lambda and ATTR amyloid were revealed and used to build a reliable classification model. Integrating the peptide filter in MALDI-IMS MSI analysis we developed a bioinformatics workflow facilitating the identification and classification of amyloidosis in a less time and sample consuming experimental setup. Our findings demonstrate also the feasibility to investigate the amyloid's composition, thus paving the way to establish classification models for the diverse types of amyloidoses and to shed further light on the complex process of amyloidogenesis.
Project description:Novel development makes remote real-time analysis with possible translation to in-vivo a reality. Remote Infrared Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization (Remote IR MALDI) system with endogenous water as matrix becomes real and allows to envisage real-time proteomics to be performed in the in-vivo context. Remote IR MALDI is demonstrated to be used to analyze peptides and proteins. Very interestingly, the corresponding mass spectra show ESI like charge states distribution, opening many applications for structural elucidation to be performed in real-time by Top-Down analysis. The charge states show no dependence toward laser wavelength or length of the transfer tube allowing for remote analyses to be perform 5 m away from the mass spectrometry (MS) instrument without modification of spectra. This brings also interesting features to the understanding of IR MALDI ionization mechanism
Project description:N-linked glycans are structurally diverse polysaccharides that represent significant biological relevance due to their involvement in disease progression and cancer. Due to their complex nature, N-linked glycans pose many analytical challenges requiring the continued development of analytical technologies. Infrared matrix-assisted laser desorption electrospray ionization (IR-MALDESI) is a hybrid ionization technique commonly used for mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) applications. Previous work demonstrated IR-MALDESI to significantly preserve sialic acid containing N-linked glycans that otherwise require chemical derivatization prior to detection. Here we demonstrate the first analysis of N-linked glycans in situ by IR-MALDESI MSI. Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) human prostate tissue was analyzed in negative ionization mode after tissue washing, antigen retrieval, and pneumatic application of PNGase F for enzymatic digestion of N-linked glycans. 53 N-linked glycans were confidently identified in the prostate sample where more than 60% contained sialic acid residues. This work demonstrates the first steps in N-linked glycan imaging of biological tissues by IR-MALDESI MSI.
Project description:Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry imaging allows for the study of metabolic activity in the tumor microenvironment of brain cancers. The detectable metabolites within these tumors are contingent upon the choice of matrix, deposition technique, and polarity setting. In this study, we compared the performance of three different matrices, two deposition techniques, and the use of positive and negative polarity in two different brain cancer types and across two species. Optimal combinations were confirmed by a comparative analysis of lipid and small-molecule abundance by using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and RNA sequencing to assess differential metabolites and enzymes between normal and tumor regions. Our findings indicate that in the tumor-bearing brain, the recrystallized α-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamic acid matrix with positive polarity offered superior performance for both detected metabolites and consistency with other techniques. Beyond these implications for brain cancer, our work establishes a workflow to identify optimal matrices for spatial metabolomics studies.
Project description:Spatially resolved characterization of proteoforms has great potential to significantly advance our understanding of physiological and disease mechanisms. However, it faces challenges regarding throughput and coverage. Herein, we developed a robust method for high-throughput proteoform imaging (HTPi) by combining matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization mass spectrometry imaging (MALDI MSI) and region-specific top-down proteomic analysis.
Project description:Cryopreservation of fish embryos is highly challenging, and to date, successful reports of fish embryo cryopreservation remain scarce. In this study, we optimized the vitrification solution and employed gold nanorods (GNRs) in a laser-assisted warming process to improve the hatching rate of Culter alburnus embryos after cryopreservation. With V11 vitrification solution (15% DMSO, 10% EG, 15% PG, and 1 mM MT) and a laser-assisted warming condition (25 μg/mL GNRs with continuous 15 W laser irradiation), we achieved rapid and homogeneous warming, and the mean hatching rate of cryopreserved embryos reached 18.83%. RNA-seq revealed that above cryopreservation procedure led to significant transcriptional changes in calcium signaling pathways and apoptosis-related genes, which may facilitate further optimization of vitrification solution. This study provides a basis for further improving the efficiency of embryo cryopreservation in Culter alburnus and other fish species.