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Analysis of protein phosphorylation by hypothesis-driven multiple-stage mass spectrometry.

We describe a strategy, which we term hypothesis-driven multiple-stage mass spectrometry (HMS-MS), for the sensitive detection and identification of phosphopeptides derived from enzymatic digests of phosphoproteins. In this strategy, we postulate that any or all of the potential sites of phosphorylation in a given protein may be phosphorylated. Using this assumption, we calculate the m/z values of all the corresponding singly charged phosphopeptide ions that could, in theory, be produced by the enzyme employed for proteolysis. We test ions at these m/z values for the presence of phosphoserine or phosphothreonine residues using tandem mass spectrometry (MS(2)) in a vacuum MALDI ion trap mass spectrometer, where the neutral loss of the elements of H(3)PO(4) (98 Da) provides a sensitive assay for the presence of phosphopeptides. Subsequent MS(3) analysis of the (M + H – 98)(+) peaks allows us to confirm or reject the hypotheses that the putative phosphopeptides are present in the sample. HMS-MS was successfully applied to the detection and identification of phosphopeptides from substrates of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae cyclin-dependent kinase (Cdk) Cdc28, phosphorylated in vitro (Ipl1) and in vivo (Orc6), basing hypothesis formation on the minimal Cdk consensus phosphorylation motif Ser/Thr-Pro. The method was also used to find in vitro phosphopeptides from a domain of the Drosophila melanogaster protein PERIOD, hypothesizing possible phosphorylations of all Ser/Thr residues without assuming a consensus motif. Our results demonstrate that HMS-MS is a sensitive, highly specific tool for systematically surveying proteins for Ser/Thr phosphorylation, and represents a significant step toward our goal of comprehensive phosphorylation mapping.

Date de publication
1st August 2004
Chercheur(euse)s
Chang EJ, Archambault V, McLachlin DT, Krutchinsky AN, Chait BT
Référence PubMed
Anal. Chem. 2004;76(15):4472-83
ID PubMed
15283590
Affiliation
Laboratory of Mass Spectrometry and Gaseous Ion Chemistry, The Rockefeller University, 1230 York Avenue, New York, New York 10021, USA.