TY - GEN A1 - Tchipilov, Teodor A1 - Raysyan, Anna A1 - Weller, Michael G. T1 - Methods for the quantification of particle-bound protein – Application to reagents for lateral-flow immunoassays (LFIA) T2 - Preprints N2 - Protein immobilization for the functionalization of particles is used in various applications, including biosensors, lateral-flow immunoassays (LFIA), bead-based assays, and others. Common methods for the quantification of bound protein are measuring protein in the supernatant before and after coating and calculating the difference. This popular approach has the potential for a significant overestimation of the amount of immobilized protein since layers not directly bound to the surface (soft protein corona) are usually lost during washing and handling. Only the layer directly bound to the surface (hard corona) can be used in subsequent assays. A simplified amino acid analysis method based on acidic hydrolysis and RP-HPLC-FLD of tyrosine and phenylalanine (aromatic amino acid analysis, AAAA) is proposed to directly quantify protein bound to the surface of gold nano- and latex microparticles. The results are compared with indirect methods such as colorimetric protein assays, such as Bradford, bicinchoninic acid (BCA), as well as AAAA of the supernatant. For both particle types, these indirect quantification techniques show a protein overestimation of up to 1700% compared to the direct AAAA measurements. In addition, protein coating on latex particles was performed both passively through adsorption and covalently through EDC/sulfo-NHS chemistry. Our results showed no difference between the immobilization methodologies. This finding suggests that usual protein determination methods are no unambiguous proof of a covalent conjugation on particles or beads. KW - Soft protein corona KW - Hard protein corona KW - Gold particles KW - Nanoparticles KW - Mikroparticles KW - Antibody KW - Bioconjugation KW - Protein quantification KW - Supernatant KW - Sodium chloride method KW - Covalent conjugation KW - Latex particles KW - Lateral flow immunoassays PY - 2022 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-545365 DO - https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202203.0332.v1 SP - 1 EP - 8 PB - MDPI CY - Basel AN - OPUS4-54536 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - GEN A1 - Tscheuschner, Georg A1 - Kaiser, Melanie N. A1 - Lisec, Jan A1 - Beslic, D. A1 - Muth, Thilo A1 - Krüger, M. A1 - Mages, H.-W. A1 - Dorner, B. G. A1 - Knospe, J. A1 - Schenk, J. A. A1 - Sellrie, F. A1 - Weller, Michael G. T1 - MALDI-TOF-MS-based identification of monoclonal murine anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies within one hour T2 - Preprints N2 - During the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, many virus-binding monoclonal antibodies have been developed for clinical and diagnostic purposes. This underlines the importance of antibodies as universal bioanalytical reagents. However, little attention is given to the reproducibility crisis that scientific studies are still facing to date. In a recent study, not even half of all research antibodies mentioned in publications could be identified at all. This should spark more efforts in the search for practical solutions for the traceability of antibodies. For this purpose, we used thirty-five monoclonal antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 to demonstrate how sequence-independent antibody identification can be achieved by simple means applied onto the protein. First, we examined the intact and light chain masses of the antibodies relative to the reference material NIST-mAb 8671. Already half of the antibodies could be identified based solely on these two parameters. In addition, we developed two complementary peptide mass fingerprinting methods with MALDI-TOF-MS that can be performed in 45 minutes and had a combined sequence coverage of over 80%. One method is based on the partial acidic hydrolysis of the protein by 5 mM of sulfuric acid at 99 °C. Furthermore, we established a fast way for a tryptic digest without an alkylation step. We were able to show that the distinction of clones is possible simply by a brief visual comparison of the mass spectra. In this work, two clones originating from the same immunization gave the same fingerprints. Later, a hybridoma sequencing confirmed the sequence identity of these sister clones. In order to automate the spectral comparison for larger libraries of antibodies, we developed the online software ABID 2.0 (https://gets.shinyapps.io/ABID/). This open-source software determines the number of matching peptides in the fingerprint spectra. We propose that publications and other documents critically relying on monoclonal antibodies with unknown amino acid sequences should include at least one antibody fingerprint. By fingerprinting an antibody in question, its identity can be confirmed by comparison with a library spectrum at any time and context. KW - SARS-CoV-2 antibody KW - Reproducibility crisis KW - Peptide mass fingerprinting KW - Monoclonal antibody KW - Traceability KW - Antibody identification KW - Identity KW - Antibody light chain KW - MALDI-TOF-MS KW - Trypsin KW - Acidic cleavage KW - Antibody subclass KW - Database KW - Peak overlap KW - ABID KW - Sulfuric acid KW - Online software KW - Sequencing KW - Peptide coverage PY - 2022 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-545182 DO - https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202203.0229.v1 SN - 2310-287X SP - 1 EP - 24 PB - MDPI CY - Basel AN - OPUS4-54518 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - GEN A1 - Wilke, Marco A1 - Röder, Bettina A1 - Paul, Martin A1 - Weller, Michael G. T1 - Sintered Glass Monoliths as New Supports for Affinity Columns T2 - Preprints N2 - A novel stationary phase for affinity separations is presented. This material is based on sintered borosilicate glass readily available as semi-finished filter plates with defined porosity and surface area. The material shows fast binding kinetics and excellent long-term stability under real application conditions due to lacking macropores and high mechanical rigidity. The glass surface can be easily modified with standard organosilane chemistry to immobilize selective binders or other molecules used for biointeraction. In this paper, the manufacturing of the columns and their respective column holders by 3D printing is shown in detail. The model system protein A/IgG was chosen as an example to examine the properties of such monolithic columns under realistic application conditions. Several specifications, such as (dynamic) IgG capacity, pressure stability, long-term performance, productivity, non-specific binding, and peak shape, are presented. It could be shown that due to the very high separation speed, 250 mg antibody per hour and column can be collected, which surpasses the productivity of most standard columns of the same size. The total IgG capacity of the shown columns is around 4 mg (5.5 mg/mL), which is sufficient for most tasks in research laboratories. The cycle time of an IgG separation can be less than 1 minute. Due to the glass material's excellent pressure resistance, these columns are compatible with standard HPLC systems. This is usually not the case with standard affinity columns, limited to manual use or application in low-pressure systems. The use of a standard HPLC system also improves the ability for automation, which enables the purification of hundreds of cell supernatants in one day. The sharp peak shape of the elution leads to an enrichment effect, which might increase the concentration of IgG by a factor of 3. The final concentration of IgG can be around 7.5 mg/mL without the need for an additional nanofiltration step. The purity of the IgG was > 95% in one step and nearly 99% with a second polishing run. KW - Affinity Chromatography KW - Glass KW - Purification KW - Antibodies KW - Solid support KW - HPLC KW - FPLC KW - Separation PY - 2021 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-529117 DO - https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202103.0298.v1 SP - 1 PB - MDPI CY - Basel AN - OPUS4-52911 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - GEN A1 - Paul, Martin A1 - Tannenberg, Robert A1 - Tscheuschner, Georg A1 - Wilke, Marco A1 - Weller, Michael G. T1 - Cocaine Detection by a Laser-induced Immunofluorometric Biosensor T2 - Preprints N2 - The trafficking of illegal drugs by criminal networks at borders, harbors, or airports is an increasing issue in public health as these routes ensure the main supply of illegal drugs. The prevention of drug smuggling, including the installation of scanners and other analytical devices to detect ultra-small traces of drugs within a reasonable time frame, remains a challenge. The presented immunosensor is based on a monolithic affinity column with a large excess of immobilized hapten, which traps fluorescently labeled antibodies as long as the analyte cocaine is absent. In the presence of the drug, some binding sites of the antibody will be blocked, which leads to an immediate breakthrough of the labeled protein, detectable by highly sensitive laser-induced fluorescence with the help of a Peltier-cooled complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) camera. Liquid handling is performed with high-precision syringe pumps and microfluidic chip-based mixing devices and flow cells. The biosensor achieved limits of detection of 23 pM (7 ppt) of cocaine with a response time of 90 seconds and a total assay time below 3 minutes. With surface wipe sampling, the biosensor was able to detect 300 pg of cocaine. This immunosensor belongs to the most sensitive and fastest detectors for cocaine and offers near-continuous analyte measurement. KW - Drug search KW - Customs KW - Confiscation KW - Border surveillance KW - Narcotics KW - International drug trade KW - Drug trafficking KW - Illicit drug KW - Immunosensor KW - Antibodies KW - Detection PY - 2021 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-529951 DO - https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202107.0521.v1 SP - 1 PB - MDPI CY - Basel AN - OPUS4-52995 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - GEN A1 - Paul, Martin A1 - Weller, Michael G. T1 - Antibody Screening by Microarray Technology – Direct Identification of Selective High-Affinity Clones T2 - Preprints N2 - The primary screening of hybridoma cells is a time-critical and laborious step during the development of monoclonal antibodies. Often critical errors occur in this phase, which supports the notion that the generation of monoclonal antibodies with hybridoma technology is difficult to control and hence a risky venture. We think that it is crucial to improve the screening process to eliminate most of the immanent deficits of the conventional approach. With this new microarray-based procedure, several advances could be achieved: Selectivity for excellent binders, high throughput, reproducible signals, avoidance of misleading avidity (multivalency) effects, and simultaneous performance of competition experiments. The latter can directly be used to select clones of desired cross-reactivity properties. In this paper, a model system with two excellent clones against carbamazepine, two weak clones and blank supernatant has been designed to examine the effectiveness of the new system. The excellent clones could be detected largely independent of the IgG concentration, which is unknown during the clone screening since the determination and subsequent adjustment of the antibody concentration is not possible in most cases. Furthermore, in this approach, the enrichment, isolation, and purification of IgG for characterization is not necessary. Raw cell culture supernatant can be used directly, even when fetal calf serum (FCS) or other complex media had been used. In addition, an improved method for the oriented antibody-immobilization on epoxy-silanized slides is presented. Based on the results of this model system, we conclude that this approach should be preferable to most other protocols leading to many of false positives, causing expensive and lengthy confirmation steps to weed out the poor clones. KW - Hybridoma KW - Monoclonal Antibodies KW - Clones KW - Competitive Immunoassay KW - Hapten Immunoassay KW - False Positives PY - 2019 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-506621 DO - https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints201911.0023.v1 SN - 2310-287X SP - 1 EP - 17 PB - MDPI CY - Basel AN - OPUS4-50662 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - GEN A1 - Tscheuschner, Georg A1 - Schwaar, Timm A1 - Weller, Michael G. T1 - Fast Confirmation of Antibody Identity by MALDI-TOF-MS Fingerprints T2 - Preprints N2 - Thousands of antibodies for diagnostic and other analytical purposes are on the market. However, it is often difficult to identify duplicates, reagent changes, and to assign the correct original publications to an antibody. This slows down scientific progress and might even be a cause of irreproducible research and a waste of resources. Recently, activities were started to suggest the sole use of recombinant antibodies in combination with the open communication of their sequence. In this case, such uncertainties should be eliminated. Unfortunately, this approach seems to be rather a long-term vision since the development and manufacturing of recombinant antibodies remain quite expensive in the foreseeable future. Also, nearly all commercial antibody suppliers may be reluctant to publish the sequence of their antibodies, since they fear counterfeiting. De-novo sequencing of antibodies is also not feasible today for a reagent user without access to the hybridoma clone. Nevertheless, it seems to be crucial for any scientist to have the opportunity to identify an antibody undoubtedly to guarantee the traceability of any research activity using antibodies from a third party as a tool. For this purpose, we developed a method for the identification of antibodies based on a MALDI-TOF-MS fingerprint. To circumvent lengthy denaturation, reduction, alkylation, and enzymatic digestion steps, the fragmentation was performed with a simple formic acid hydrolysis step. Eighty-nine unknown monoclonal antibodies were used for this study to examine the feasibility of this approach. Although the molecular assignment of peaks was rarely possible, antibodies could be easily recognized in a blinded test, simply from their mass-spectral fingerprint. A general protocol is given, which could be used without any optimization to generate fingerprints for a database. We want to propose that in most scientific projects relying critically on antibody reagents, such a fingerprint should be established to prove and document the identity of the used antibodies and to assign a specific reagent to a datasheet of a commercial supplier, a public database record or an antibody ID. KW - Reproducibility KW - Quality Control KW - Traceability KW - Diagnostics KW - ELISA KW - Immunoassay PY - 2020 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-506590 DO - https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202002.0207.v1 SN - 2310-287X SP - 1 EP - 17 PB - MDPI CY - Basel AN - OPUS4-50659 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - GEN A1 - Tchipilov, Teodor A1 - Meyer, Klas A1 - Weller, Michael G. T1 - Quantitative 1H Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (qNMR) of Aromatic Amino Acids for Protein Quantification T2 - Preprints N2 - qNMR is a valuable technique for metrological studies due to the uniformity of its signal response for all chemical species of an isotope of interest, which enables compound-independent calibration. However, protein quantification remained challenging as large molecules produce wide, low-intensity signals that reduce the already low sensitivity. Combining qNMR with the hydrolysis of protein samples into amino acids circumvents many of these issues and facilitates the use of NMR spectroscopy for absolute protein and peptide quantification.In this work, different conditions have been tested for quantifying aromatic amino acids and proteins. First, we examined the pH-based signal shifts in the aromatic region. The preferable pH depends on the selection of the amino acids for quantification and which internal standard substance should be used to avoid peak overlap. Several aromatic compounds, such as terephthalic acid, sulfoisophthalic acid, and benzene tricarboxylic acid, have been applied as internal standards. The quantification of amino acids from an amino acid standard, as well as from a certified reference material (bovine serum albumin), was performed. Using the first two suggested internal standards, recovery was ~ 97 % for histidine, phenylalanine, and tyrosine at a concentration of approximately 1 mM in solution. Acidic hydrolysis of a certified reference material (CRM) of bovine serum albumin (BSA) and subsequent quantification of Phe and Tyr yielded recoveries of 98 ± 2 and 88 ± 4 %, respectively, at a protein concentration of 16 g/L or 250 µM. KW - Amino acid analysis KW - AAA KW - Protein hydrolysis KW - Metrology KW - Traceability KW - Reference materials KW - Internal standards KW - Calibration PY - 2022 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-564520 DO - https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202211.0569.v1 SP - 1 EP - 13 PB - MDPI CY - Basel AN - OPUS4-56452 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -