Histone Modification Screening using Liquid Chromatography, Trapped Ion Mobility Spectrometry, and Time-Of-Flight Mass Spectrometry

Summary

An analytical workflow based on liquid chromatography, trapped ion mobility spectrometry, and time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC-TIMS-ToF MS/MS) for high confidence and highly reproducible "bottom-up" analysis of histone modifications and identification based on principal parameters (retention time [RT], collision cross section [CCS], and accurate mass-to-charge [m/z] ratio).

Abstract

Histone proteins are highly abundant and conserved among eukaryotes and play a large role in gene regulation as a result of structures known as posttranslational modifications (PTMs). Identifying the position and nature of each PTM or pattern of PTMs in reference to external or genetic factors allows this information to be statistically correlated with biological responses such as DNA transcription, replication, or repair. In the present work, a high-throughput analytical protocol for the detection of histone PTMs from biological samples is described. The use of complementary liquid chromatography, trapped ion mobility spectrometry, and time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC-TIMS-ToF MS/MS) enables the separation and PTM assignment of the most biologically relevant modifications in a single analysis. The described approach takes advantage of recent developments in dependent data acquisition (DDA) using parallel accumulation in the mobility trap, followed by sequential fragmentation and collision-induced dissociation. Histone PTMs are confidently assigned based on their retention time, mobility, and fragmentation pattern.

Introduction

In eukaryotic cells, DNA is packaged as chromatin into functional units called nucleosomes. These units are composed of an octamer of four core histones (two each of H2A, H2B, H3, and H4)^1,2,3,4. Histones are amongst the most abundant and highly conserved proteins in eukaryotes, which are largely responsible for gene regulation⁵. Histone posttranslational modifications (PTMs) play a large role in the regulation of chromatin dynamics and rigger various biological processes such as DNA transcription, replication, and re....

Protocol

NOTE: Histone samples were extracted using a method adapted from Bhanu et al. (2020)¹².

1. Sample preparation

1. Harvesting cultured cells
   1. When cells are 80% confluent, ensure they are viable using trypan blue exclusion.
      NOTE: A HeLa S3 cell line was used for these experiments, but this method can be applied to any cultured cells.
   2. Aspirate the media, then apply 5 mL of 1x phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) to each plate.
   3. Swirl the plate(s) to rinse all residual media, then aspirate PBS and apply 5 mL of 1x PBS.
   4. Gently separate the cells from ....

Results

A bottom-up proteomic workflow (Figure 7) typically involves the following: extraction of the target protein(s) from a crude sample, followed by quantifying the concentration of the protein(s), and then fractionation, usually by gel electrophoresis or liquid chromatography. After fractionation, the proteins are digested using a proteolytic enzyme (often trypsin), and finally, mass spectrometric analysis of the resulting peptides and protein identification using an established database

Discussion

Histones are basic proteins that regulate chromatin structure by interacting with DNA in the form of octamers consisting of the four core histones (two each of H2A, H2B, H3, and H4)²⁰. Histones contain numerous lysine and arginine residues, which are readily modified, leading to extensive PTMs that alter the chromatin chemistry by influencing histone function or by binding to other cellular proteins²¹. PTMs can elicit biological responses by working in tandem, with specific.......

Materials

List of materials used in this article

Name	Company	Catalog Number	Comments
-80 °C Freezer
1x Phosphate Buffered Saline (PBS), pH 7.4	Thermo Fisher Scientific	10010023	Animal Origin-Free
1 mL Pipette Tips	Thermo Fisher Scientific	94060710	Finntip Flex 1000 μL, nonsterile, nonfiltered, racked tips
1.5 mL Microcentrifuge Tubes	Thermo Fisher Scientific	14-282-300	Use these tubes for the simple and safe processing of sample volumes up to 1.5 mL
10 µL Pipette Tips	Thermo Fisher Scientific	94060100	Finntip Flex, 10 μL, nonsterile, non-filtered, racked
10% NP-40	Thermo Fisher Scientific	28324	NP-40 Surfact-Amps Detergent Solution
10x Dulbecco’s PBS without Ca2+/Mg2+	(Mediatech)	MT21031CM
15 mL Conical Tubes	Corning	352196	Falcon Conical Centrifuge Tubes
200 µL Gel-Loading Pipette Tips	Thermo Fisher Scientific	02-707-138	Fisherbrand Gel-Loading Tips, 1–200 μL
200 µL Pipette Tips	Thermo Fisher Scientific	94060310	Finntip Flex 200μL, nonsterile, nonfiltered, racked tips
2x Laemmli Sample Buffer	Bio-Rad	1610737	Premixed protein sample buffer for SDS-PAGE
50 mL Conical Tubes	Corning	352070	Falcon Conical Centrifuge Tubes
96-well flat bottom plate	Thermo Fisher Scientific	12565501
96-well plate, V-Bottom 600 μL	Axygen	P-DW-500-C-S
Acetone	Sigma Aldrich	179124	ACS reagent, ≥99.5%
Acetonitrile (ACN)	Thermo Fisher Scientific	A998	HPLC, Fisher Chemical
Acetonitrile with 0.1% Formic acid (v/v), LC/MS Grade	Thermo Fisher Scientific	LS120	Optima LC/MS Grade, Thermo Scientific
AEBSF	Thermo Fisher Scientific	328110500	AEBSF hydrochloride, 98%
Ammonium bicarbonate, NH4HCO3	Sigma Aldrich	09830	BioUltra, ≥99.5% (T)
Ammonium hydroxide solution, NH4OH	Sigma Aldrich	AX1303	Meets ACS Specifications, Meets Reagent Specifications for testing USP/NF monographs GR ACS
Argon (Ar)	Airgas	AR HP 300
BEH C18 HPLC column	Waters	186003625	XBridge Peptide BEH C18 Column, 300 Å, 5 µm, 4.6 mm X 250 mm, 1K–15K
Bovine Serum Albumin (BSA)	Sigma Aldrich	A7906	Heat shock fraction, pH 7, ≥98%
Calcium chloride, CaCl2	Sigma Aldrich	C4901	Anhydrous, powder, ≥97%
Cell dissociation buffer	Thermo Fisher Scientific	13151014
Ceramic scoring wafer	Restek	20116
Compass DataAnalysis 6.0	Bruker Datonics
Compass HyStar 6.2	Bruker Daltonics
Compass IsotopePattern	Bruker Daltonics
Compass timsControl 4.1	Bruker Daltonics
Coomassie Brilliant Blue R-250	Bio-Rad	1610436
Deep Well, 96-Well Microplate, 2.0 mL	Thermo Fisher Scientific	89237526
Disposable Cell Lifters	Thermo Fisher Scientific	08100240	Fisherbrand Cell Lifters; Disposable lifters quickly remove cell layers
Disposable Pellet Pestles	Thermo Fisher Scientific	12-141-363	Fisherbrand Pellet Pestles; Resuspend protein and DNA pellets or grind soft tissue in microcentrifuge tubes
Dithiothreitol (DTT)	Thermo Fisher Scientific	P2325	1 M
Formic acid (FA)	Sigma Aldrich	695076	ACS reagent, ≥96%
Fused silica capillary 75 μm ID x 363 μm OD	(Molex (Polymicro)	TSP075375
Glacial Acetic Acid	Thermo Fisher Scientific	A38S	Acetic Acid, Glacial (Certified ACS), Fisher Chemical
Glass Pasteur Pipettes	Sigma Aldrich	BR747725-1000EA
High-Performance Liquid Chromatograph	Shimadzu		Shimadzu Prominence 20 HPLC UFLC System
Hydrochloric acid, HCl	Sigma Aldrich	258148	ACS reagent, 37%
Hypercarb 30-40 μm Carbon 150–300 Å	Thermo Fisher Scientific	60106-402
Hypersep cartridge	Thermo Fisher Scientific	60109-404
LC/MS Calibration Standard, for ESI-ToF	Agilent	G1969-85000	TuningMix
Magnesium chloride, MgCl2	Sigma Aldrich	M8266	Anhydrous, ≥98%
Methanol, for HPLC	Thermo Fisher Scientific	A454	Optima for HPLC, Fisher Chemical
Microcentrifuge Tube Adapters	GL Sciences	501021514
Microcystin	Thermo Fisher Scientific	50-200-8727	Enzo Life Sciences Microcystin-LA
MS sample vial, LaPhaPack, Snap, 12 mm x 32 mm	LEAP PAL Parts	LAP.11190933
Nanodrop	Thermo Fisher Scientific	model: ND3300
Nitrogen (N2)	Airgas	NI UHP300
PEAKS Studio X+	Bioinformatic Solutions
pH indicator strips, Instachek	Micro Essential Lab	JR-113	Model: Hydrion
Potassium chloride, KCl	Sigma Aldrich	P3911	ACS reagent, 99.0%–100.5%
Pressure Injection Cell	Next Advance	model: PC77
Propionic Anhydride	Sigma Aldrich	8.00608	For synthesis
Refrigerated Centrifuge (700–18,000 x g)	NuAire, model: Nuwind	NU-C200V
Reprosil-Pur 120 C18-AQ 3 μm, 3 g	ESI Source Solutions	r13.aq.0003
SDS-PAGE Gels	Bio-Rad	4569035	Any kD precast polyacrylamide gel, 8.6 cm × 6.7 cm (W × L), for use with Mini-PROTEAN Electrophoresis Cells
Sodium butyrate	Thermo Fisher Scientific	A11079.06	98+%
Sodium chloride, NaCl	Sigma Aldrich	S9888	ACS reagent, ≥99.0%
SPE disk, C18	VWR	76333-134	Empore SPE disk, C18, CDS Analytical, 90 mm x 0.5 mm, 12 µm
SpeedVac+ vacuum pump and plate rotor	Savant	model: SC210A
Sucrose	Millipore	1.07651	suitable for microbiology
Sulfuric acid, H2SO4	Sigma Aldrich	339741	99.999%
TIMS-ToF Mass Spectrometer	Bruker Daltonics		model Tims tof ms
Trichloroacetic acid solution, TCA	Sigma Aldrich	T0699	6.1 N
Trifluoroacetic acid (TFA)	Sigma Aldrich	302031	Suitable for HPLC, ≥99.0%
Triversa Nanomate	Advion	model: TR263
TrypsinProtease, MS Grade	Thermo Fisher Scientific	90057
Tube rotator	Thermo Fisher Scientific	88881001
Vortex Mixer	Thermo Fisher Scientific	88880017
Water with 0.1% Formic acid (v/v), LC/MS Grade	Thermo Fisher Scientific	LS118	Optima LC/MS Grade, Thermo Scientific