TY - JOUR A1 - Tscheuschner, Georg A1 - Schwaar, Timm A1 - Weller, Michael G. T1 - Fast Confirmation of Antibody Identity by MALDI-TOF MS Fingerprints 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. Nearly all commercial antibody suppliers also 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, as well as to assign a specific reagent to a datasheet of a commercial supplier, public database record, or antibody ID. KW - Reproducibility KW - Quality Control KW - Traceability KW - Diagnostics KW - Hybridoma KW - Monoclonal Antibody KW - Recombinant Antibody PY - 2020 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-506611 DO - https://doi.org/10.3390/antib9020008 SN - 2073-4468 VL - 9 IS - 2 SP - 1 EP - 17 PB - MDPI CY - Basel AN - OPUS4-50661 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Ziegler, K. A1 - Kunert, A. T. A1 - Reinmuth-Selzle, K. A1 - Leifke, A. L. A1 - Widera, D. A1 - Weller, Michael G. A1 - Schuppan, D. A1 - Fröhlich-Nowoisky, J. A1 - Lucas, K. A1 - Pöschl, U. T1 - Chemical modification of pro-inflammatory proteins by peroxynitrite increases activation of TLR4 and NF-κB: Implications for the health effects of air pollution and oxidative stress N2 - Environmental pollutants like fine particulate matter can cause adverse health effects through oxidative stress and inflammation. Reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (ROS/RNS) such as peroxynitrite can chemically modify proteins, but the effects of such modifications on the immune system and human health are not well understood. In the course of inflammatory processes, the Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) can sense damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs). Here, we investigate how the TLR4 response and pro-inflammatory potential of the proteinous DAMPs α-Synuclein (α-Syn), heat shock protein 60 (HSP60), and high-mobility-group box 1 protein (HMGB1), which are relevant in neurodegenerative and cardiovascular diseases, changes upon chemical modification with peroxynitrite. For the peroxynitrite-modified proteins, we found a strongly enhanced activation of TLR4 and the pro-inflammatory transcription factor NF-κB in stable reporter cell lines as well as increased mRNA expression and secretion of the pro-inflammatory cytokines TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-8 in human monocytes (THP-1). This enhanced activation of innate immunity via TLR4 is mediated by covalent chemical modifications of the studied DAMPs. Our results show that proteinous DAMPs modified by peroxynitrite more potently amplify inflammation via TLR4 activation than the native DAMPs, and provide first evidence that such modifications can directly enhance innate immune responses via a defined receptor. These findings suggest that environmental pollutants and related ROS/RNS may play a role in promoting acute and chronic inflammatory disorders by structurally modifying the body's own DAMPs. This may have important consequences for chronic neurodegenerative, cardiovascular or gastrointestinal diseases that are prevalent in modern societies, and calls for action, to improve air quality and climate in the Anthropocene. KW - Protein nitration KW - Protein oligomerization KW - Damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) KW - Pattern recognition receptor KW - Anthropocene KW - Environmental pollutants PY - 2020 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-517128 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.redox.2020.101581 VL - 37 SP - 101581 PB - Elsevier B.V. AN - OPUS4-51712 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Steglich, P. A1 - Bondarenko, S. A1 - Mai, C. A1 - Paul, Martin A1 - Weller, Michael G. A1 - Mai, A. T1 - CMOS-Compatible Silicon Photonic Sensor for Refractive Index Sensing Using Local Back-Side Release N2 - Silicon photonic sensors are promising candidates for lab-on-a-chip solutions with versatile applications and scalable production prospects using complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) fabrication methods. However, the widespread use has been hindered because the sensing area adjoins optical and electrical components making packaging and sensor handling challenging. In this work, a local back-side release of the photonic sensor is employed, enabling a separation of the sensing area from the rest of the chip. This approach allows preserving the compatibility of photonic integrated circuits in the front-end of line and metal interconnects in the back-end of line. The sensor is based on a micro-ring resonator and is fabricated on wafer-level using a CMOS technology. We revealed a ring resonator sensitivity for homogeneous sensing of 106 nm/RIU. KW - Photonic biosensor KW - Lab-on-a-chip KW - Ring resonator KW - Resonance wavelength shift KW - PIC technology KW - Back-side integration PY - 2020 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-517139 DO - https://doi.org/10.1109/LPT.2020.3019114 VL - 32 IS - 19 SP - 1241 EP - 1244 PB - IEEE AN - OPUS4-51713 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Brangsch, J. A1 - Reimann, C. A1 - Kaufmann, Jan Ole A1 - Adams, L. C. A1 - Onthank, D. A1 - Thöne-Reineke, C. A1 - Robinson, S. A1 - Ponader, Marco A1 - Weller, Michael G. A1 - Buchholz, R. A1 - Karst, U. A1 - Botnar, R. A1 - Hamm, B. A1 - Makowski, M. R. T1 - Molecular MR-Imaging for Noninvasive Quantification of the Anti-Inflammatory Effect of Targeting Interleukin-1β in a Mouse Model of Aortic Aneurysm N2 - Background: Molecular-MRI is a promising imaging modality for the assessment of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs). Interleukin-1β (IL-1β) represents a new therapeutic tool for AAA-treatment, since pro-inflammatory cytokines are key-mediators of inflammation. This study investigates the potential of molecular-MRI to evaluate therapeutic effects of an anti-IL-1β-therapy on AAA-formation in a mouse-model. Methods: Osmotic-minipumps were implanted in apolipoprotein-deficient-mice (N = 27). One group (Ang-II+01BSUR group, n = 9) was infused with angiotensin-II (Ang-II) for 4 weeks and received an anti-murine IL-1β-antibody (01BSUR) 3 times. One group (Ang-II-group, n = 9) was infused with Ang-II for 4 weeks but received no treatment. Control-group (n = 9) was infused with saline and received no treatment. MR-imaging was performed using an elastin-specific gadolinium-based-probe (0.2 mmol/kg). Results: Mice of the Ang-II+01BSUR-group showed a lower aortic-diameter compared to mice of the Ang-II-group and control mice (p < 0.05). Using the elastin-specific-probe, a significant decrease in elastin-destruction was observed in mice of the Ang-II+01BSUR-group. In vivo MR-measurements correlated well with histopathology (y = 0.34x-13.81, R2 = 0.84, p < 0.05), ICP-MS (y = 0.02x+2.39; R2 = 0.81, p < 0.05) and LA-ICP-MS. Immunofluorescence and western-blotting confirmed a reduced IL-1β-expression. Conclusions: Molecular-MRI enables the early visualization and quantification of the anti-inflammatory-effects of an IL-1β-inhibitor in a mouse-model of AAAs. Responders and non-responders could be identified early after the initiation of the therapy using molecular-MRI. KW - Cardiovascular KW - Molecular-MRI KW - Magnetic resonance imaging KW - Gadolinium-based contrast agent KW - Elastin-specific contrast agent ESMA KW - Gadovist KW - Gadofosveset KW - MR Angiography KW - Inductively Coupled Mass Spectroscopy KW - Element Specific Bioimaging Using Laser Ablation KW - Visualization PY - 2020 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-517150 DO - https://doi.org/10.1177/1536012120961875 N1 - Geburtsname von Ponader, Marco: Wilke, M. - Birth name of Ponader, Marco: Wilke, M. VL - 19 SP - 61875 PB - SAGE AN - OPUS4-51715 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Keller, S. A1 - Borde, T. A1 - Brangsch, J. A1 - Reimann, C. A1 - Kader, A. A1 - Schulze, D. A1 - Buchholz, R. A1 - Kaufmann, Jan Ole A1 - Karst, U. A1 - Schellenberger, E. A1 - Hamm, B. A1 - Makowski, M. R. T1 - Assessment of the hepatic tumor extracellular matrix using elastin‑specific molecular magnetic resonance imaging in an experimental rabbit cancer model N2 - To investigate the imaging performance of an elastin-specific molecular magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) probe with respect to the extracellular matrix (ECM) in an experimental hepatic cancer model. Twelve rabbits with hepatic VX2 tumors were examined using 3 T MRI 14, 21, and 28 days after tumor implantation for two subsequent days (gadobutrol, day 1; elastin-specific probe, day 2). The relative enhancement (RE) of segmented tumor regions (central and margin) and the peritumoral matrix was calculated using pre-contrast and delayed-phase T1w sequences. MRI measurements were correlated to histopathology and element-specific and spatially resolved mass spectrometry (MS). Mixed-model analysis was performed to assess the performance of the elastin-specific probe. In comparison to gadobutrol, the elastin probe showed significantly stronger RE, which was pronounced in the tumor margin (day 14–28: P ≤ 0.007). In addition, the elastin probe was superior in discriminating between tumor regions (χ2(4) = 65.87; P < 0.001). MRI-based measurements of the elastin probe significantly correlated with the ex vivo elastinstain (R = .84; P <0 .001) and absolute gadolinium concentrations (ICP-MS: R = .73, P <0 .01). LA-ICP-MS imaging confirmed the colocalization of the elastin-specific probe with elastic fibers. Elastin-specific molecular MRI is superior to non-specific gadolinium-based contrast agents in imaging the ECM of hepatic tumors and the peritumoral tissue. KW - Elastin-specific molecular agent KW - Extracellular matrix KW - Hepatocellular carcinoma KW - Inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy KW - Laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry KW - Magnetic resonance imaging KW - MR imaging KW - ESMA KW - Gadolinium PY - 2020 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-517360 DO - https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-77624-8 VL - 10 IS - 1 SP - 20785 PB - Nature AN - OPUS4-51736 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Paul, Martin A1 - Tscheuschner, Georg A1 - Herrmann, Stefan A1 - Weller, Michael G. T1 - Fast Detection of 2,4,6-Trinitrotoluene (TNT) at ppt Level by a Laser-Induced Immunofluorometric Biosensor N2 - The illegal use of explosives by terrorists and other criminals is an increasing issue in public spaces, such as airports, railway stations, highways, sports venues, theaters, and other large buildings. Security in these environments can be achieved by different means, including the installation of scanners and other analytical devices to detect ultra-small traces of explosives in a very short time-frame to be able to take action as early as possible to prevent the detonation of such devices. Unfortunately, an ideal explosive detection system still does not exist, which means that a compromise is needed in practice. Most detection devices lack the extreme analytical sensitivity, which is nevertheless necessary due to the low vapor pressure of nearly all explosives. In addition, the rate of false positives needs to be virtually zero, which is also very difficult to achieve. Here we present an immunosensor system based on kinetic competition, which is known to be very fast and may even overcome affinity limitation, which impairs the performance of many traditional competitive assays. This immunosensor consists of a monolithic glass column with a vast excess of immobilized hapten, which traps the fluorescently labeled antibody as long as no explosive is present. In the case of the explosive 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT), 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 chip-based mixing-devices and flow-cells. The system achieved limits of detection of 1 pM (1 ppt) of the fluorescent label and around 100 pM (20 ppt) of TNT. The total assay time is less than 8 min. A cross-reactivity test with 5000 pM solutions showed no signal by pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN), 1,3,5-trinitroperhydro-1,3,5-triazine (RDX), and octahydro-1,3,5,7-tetranitro-1,3,5,7-tetrazocine (HMX). This immunosensor belongs to the most sensitive and fastest detectors for TNT with no significant cross-reactivity by non-related compounds. The consumption of the labeled antibody is surprisingly low: 1 mg of the reagent would be sufficient for more than one year of continuous biosensor operation. KW - Airport KW - Aviation KW - Bombs KW - Terrorism KW - Biosensing KW - Continuous Sensor KW - High-Speed KW - Ultrasensitive PY - 2020 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-511245 DO - https://doi.org/10.3390/bios10080089 VL - 10 IS - 8 SP - 89 PB - MDPI CY - Basel AN - OPUS4-51124 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kader, A. A1 - Brangsch, J. A1 - Kaufmann, Jan Ole A1 - Zhao, J. A1 - Mangarova, D. B. A1 - Moeckel, J. A1 - Adams, L. C. A1 - Sack, I. A1 - Taupitz, M. A1 - Hamm, B. A1 - Makowski, M. R. T1 - Molecular MR Imaging of Prostate Cancer N2 - This review summarizes recent developments regarding molecular imaging markers for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of prostate cancer (PCa). Currently, the clinical standard includes MR imaging using unspecific gadolinium-based contrast agents. Specific molecular probes for the diagnosis of PCa could improve the molecular characterization of the tumor in a non-invasive examination. Furthermore, molecular probes could enable targeted therapies to suppress tumor growth or reduce the tumor size. KW - Prostate cancer KW - Magnetic resonance imaging KW - Molecular imaging KW - Imaging KW - Molecular marker KW - Screening KW - MRI KW - Diagnosis PY - 2021 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-519503 DO - https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines9010001 VL - 9 IS - 1 SP - 1 EP - 17 PB - MDPI CY - Basel AN - OPUS4-51950 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Ponader, Marco A1 - Röder, Bettina A1 - Paul, Martin A1 - Weller, Michael G. T1 - Sintered glass monoliths as supports for affinity columns 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 min. 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 nano-filtration step. The purity of the IgG was > 95% in one step and nearly 99% with a second polishing run. KW - Affinity Chromatography KW - Affinity Extraction KW - Affinity Separation KW - Protein Purification KW - Down Stream Processing KW - Antibody Purification KW - Diagnostic Antibodies KW - Therapeutic Antibodies KW - Automated Purification KW - HPLC KW - FPLC KW - IgG determination KW - Concentration step KW - Monoclonal Antibodies KW - Polyclonal Antibodies KW - Human Plasma KW - Glass Support KW - Borosilicate Glass KW - Monolith KW - Sintered Material KW - Additive Manufacturing KW - Column holder KW - Construction KW - Open Science KW - Citizen Science KW - Protein A KW - Regeneration KW - High-Speed Separations KW - Robustness PY - 2021 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-527581 DO - https://doi.org/10.3390/separations8050056 SN - 2297-8739 N1 - Geburtsname von Ponader, Marco: Wilke, M. - Birth name of Ponader, Marco: Wilke, M. VL - 8 IS - 5 SP - 1 EP - 16 PB - MDPI CY - Basel AN - OPUS4-52758 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Backes, A. T. A1 - Reinmuth-Selzle, K. A1 - Leifke, A. L. A1 - Ziegler, K. A1 - Krevert, C. S. A1 - Tscheuschner, Georg A1 - Lucas, K. A1 - Weller, Michael G. A1 - Berkemeier, T. A1 - Pöschl, U. A1 - Fröhlich-Nowoisky, J. T1 - Oligomerization and Nitration of the Grass Pollen Allergen Phl p 5 by Ozone, Nitrogen Dioxide, and Peroxynitrite: Reaction Products, Kinetics, and Health Effects N2 - The allergenic and inflammatory potential of proteins can be enhanced by chemical modification upon exposure to atmospheric or physiological oxidants. The molecular mechanisms and kinetics of such modifications, however, have not yet been fully resolved. We investigated the oligomerization and nitration of the grass pollen allergen Phl p 5 by ozone (O3), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and peroxynitrite (ONOO–). Within several hours of exposure to atmospherically relevant concentration levels of O3 and NO2, up to 50% of Phl p 5 were converted into protein oligomers, likely by formation of dityrosine cross-links. Assuming that tyrosine residues are the preferential site of nitration, up to 10% of the 12 tyrosine residues per protein monomer were nitrated. For the reaction with peroxynitrite, the largest oligomer mass fractions (up to 50%) were found for equimolar concentrations of peroxynitrite over tyrosine residues. With excess peroxynitrite, the nitration degrees increased up to 40% whereas the oligomer mass fractions decreased to 20%. Our results suggest that protein oligomerization and nitration are competing processes, which is consistent with a two-step mechanism involving a reactive oxygen intermediate (ROI), as observed for other proteins. The modified proteins can promote pro-inflammatory cellular signaling that may contribute to chronic inflammation and allergies in response to air pollution. KW - Protein KW - Nitrotyrosine KW - Dityrosine KW - Allergy KW - Hay fever KW - Diesel exhaust KW - Combustion KW - Exhaust PY - 2021 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-529729 DO - https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms22147616 VL - 22 IS - 14 PB - MDPI CY - Basel AN - OPUS4-52972 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Lemke, Nora A1 - El-Khatib, Ahmed H. A1 - Tchipilov, Teodor A1 - Jakubowski, N. A1 - Weller, Michael G. A1 - Vogl, Jochen T1 - Procedure providing SI‑traceable results for the calibration of protein standards by sulfur determination and its application on tau N2 - Quantitative proteomics is a growing research area and one of the most important tools in the life sciences. Well-characterized and quantified protein standards are needed to achieve accurate and reliable results. However, only a limited number of sufficiently characterized protein standards are currently available. To fill this gap, a method for traceable protein quantification using sulfur isotope dilution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) was developed in this study. Gel filtration and membrane filtration were tested for the separation of non-protein-bound sulfur in the protein solution. Membrane filtration demonstrated a better performance due to the lower workload and the very low sulfur blanks of 11 ng, making it well suited for high-purity proteins such as NIST SRM 927, a bovine serum albumin (BSA). The method development was accomplished with NIST SRM 927e and a commercial avidin. The quantified mass fraction of NIST SRM 927e agreed very well with the certified value and showed similar uncertainties (3.6%) as established methods while requiring less sample preparation and no species-specific standards. Finally, the developed procedure was applied to the tau protein, which is a biomarker for a group of neurodegenerative diseases denoted “tauopathies” including, e.g., Alzheimer’s disease and frontotemporal dementia. For the absolute quantification of tau in the brain of transgenic mice overexpressing human tau, a well-defined calibration standard was needed. Therefore, a pure tau solution was quantified, yielding a protein mass fraction of (0.328 ± 0.036) g/kg, which was confirmed by amino acid analysis. KW - Iinductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry KW - Isotope dilution KW - Quantitative protein analysis KW - Sulfur KW - SI traceability PY - 2022 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-545200 DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-022-03974-z VL - 414 SP - 4441 EP - 4455 PB - Springer Verlag AN - OPUS4-54520 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Reinmuth-Selzle, K. A1 - Tchipilov, Teodor A1 - Backes, A. T. A1 - Tscheuschner, Georg A1 - Tang, K. A1 - Ziegler, K. A1 - Lucas, K. A1 - Pöschl, U. A1 - Fröhlich-Nowoisky, J. A1 - Weller, Michael G. T1 - Determination of the protein content of complex samples by aromatic amino acid analysis, liquid chromatography-UV absorbance, and colorimetry N2 - Fast and accurate determination of the protein content of a sample is an important and non-trivial task of many biochemical, biomedical, food chemical, pharmaceutical, and environmental research activities. Different methods of total protein determination are used for a wide range of proteins with highly variable properties in complex matrices. These methods usually work reasonably well for proteins under controlled conditions, but the results for non-standard and complex samples are often questionable. Here, we compare new and well-established methods, including traditional amino acid analysis (AAA), aromatic amino acid analysis (AAAA) based on the amino acids phenylalanine and tyrosine, reversed-phase liquid chromatography of intact proteins with UV absorbance measurements at 220 and 280 nm (LC-220, LC-280), and colorimetric assays like Coomassie Blue G-250 dye-binding assay (Bradford) and bicinchoninic acid (BCA) assay. We investigated different samples, including proteins with challenging properties, chemical modifications, mixtures, and complex matrices like air particulate matter and pollen extracts. All methods yielded accurate and precise results for the protein and matrix used for calibration. AAA, AAAA with fluorescence detection, and the LC-220 method yielded robust results even under more challenging conditions (variable analytes and matrices). These methods turned out to be well-suited for reliable determination of the protein content in a wide range of samples, such as air particulate matter and pollen. KW - Air particulate matter KW - Aromatic amino acid analysis KW - Atmospheric aerosol KW - Chemical protein modification KW - Derivatization KW - Nitration KW - Nitrotyrosine KW - LC-UV absorbance KW - Pollen extract KW - Protein quantification KW - Protein test KW - Kjeldahl KW - Tyrosine KW - Phenylalanine KW - Hydrolysis KW - Bradford KW - BCA test KW - 280 nm KW - Air filter samples KW - Fluorescence KW - HPLC KW - Chromatography KW - Protein content KW - 150th anniversary of BAM KW - Topical collection: Analytical Methods and Applications in the Materials and Life Sciences PY - 2022 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-545924 UR - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35320366/ DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-022-03910-1 SP - 1 EP - 14 PB - Springer Nature Limited CY - New York, Heidelberg AN - OPUS4-54592 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Tannenberg, Robert A1 - Paul, Martin A1 - Röder, Bettina A1 - Gande, S. L. A1 - Sreeramulu, S. A1 - Saxena, K. A1 - Richter, C. A1 - Schwalbe, H. A1 - Swart, C. A1 - Weller, Michael G. T1 - Chemiluminescence biosensor for the determination of cardiac troponin I (cTnI) N2 - Cardiac troponin I (cTnI) is a crucial biomarker for diagnosing cardiac vascular diseases, including acute myocardial infarction (AMI). This study presents a proof-of-concept chemiluminescence-based immunosensor for rapid and accurate measurement of cTnI, with the potential for online monitoring. The immunosensor incorporates a flow cell design and a sensitive complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) camera for optical readout. A microfluidic setup was established to enable selective and quasi-online determination of cTnI within ten minutes. The sensor was tested with recombinant cTnI in phosphate buffer, demonstrating measurements in the concentration range of 2–25 µg/L, with a limit of detection (LoD) of 0.6 µg/L (23 pmol/L) achieved using the optimized system. The immunosensor exhibited high selectivity, as no cross-reactivity was observed with other recombinant proteins such as cTnT and cTnC at a concentration of 16 µg/L. Measurements with diluted blood plasma and serum yielded an LoD of 60 µg/L (2.4 nmol/L) and 70 µg/L (2.9 nmol/L), respectively. This biosensor offers a promising approach for the rapid and sensitive detection of cTnI, contributing to the diagnosis and management of acute myocardial infarction and other cardiac vascular diseases. N2 - Das kardiale Troponin I (cTnI) ist ein wichtiger Biomarker für die Diagnose von Herz-Kreislauf-Erkrankungen, einschließlich des akuten Myokardinfarkts (AMI). In dieser Studie wird ein auf Chemilumineszenz basierender Immunsensor für die schnelle und genaue Messung von cTnI vorgestellt, der das Potenzial für eine Online-Überwachung hat. Der Immunsensor besteht aus einer Durchflusszelle und einer empfindlichen CMOS-Kamera (Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor) zur optischen Detektion. Es wurde ein mikrofluidischer Aufbau entwickelt, der eine selektive und quasi Online-Bestimmung von cTnI innerhalb von zehn Minuten ermöglicht. Der Sensor wurde mit rekombinantem cTnI in Phosphatpuffer getestet und zeigte einen Messbereich von 2-25 µg/L, wobei mit dem optimierten System eine Nachweisgrenze (LoD) von 0,6 µg/L (23 pmol/L) erreicht wurde. Der Immunsensor zeigte eine hohe Selektivität, da keine Kreuzreaktivität mit anderen rekombinanten Proteinen wie cTnT und cTnC bei einer Konzentration von 16 µg/L beobachtet wurde. Messungen mit verdünntem Blutplasma und Serum ergaben einen LoD von 60 µg/L (2,4 nmol/L) bzw. 70 µg/L (2,9 nmol/L). Dieser Biosensor bietet einen vielversprechenden Ansatz für den schnellen und empfindlichen Nachweis von cTnI, der zur Diagnose und Behandlung des akuten Myokardinfarkts und anderer kardialer Gefäßerkrankungen beitragen kann. KW - Acute myocardial infarction KW - Heart attack KW - Emergency KW - Diagnosis KW - Cardiac troponin KW - Biomarker KW - Immunosensor KW - Biosensor KW - Chemiluminescence KW - Luminol KW - Peroxidase KW - Monoclonal antibodies KW - Flow injection immunoassay KW - Immunometric assay KW - Immunometric biosensor KW - Microfluidic system KW - Monolithic column KW - Online biosensor PY - 2023 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-575471 DO - https://doi.org/10.3390/bios13040455 SN - 2079-6374 VL - 13 IS - 4 SP - 1 EP - 20 PB - MDPI CY - Basel AN - OPUS4-57547 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Völzke, Jule L. A1 - Smatty, Sarah A1 - Döring, Sarah A1 - Ewald, Shireen A1 - Oelze, Marcus A1 - Fratzke, Franziska A1 - Flemig, Sabine A1 - Konthur, Zoltán A1 - Weller, Michael G. T1 - Efficient Purification of Polyhistidine-Tagged Recombinant Proteins Using Functionalized Corundum Particles N2 - Immobilized metal affinity chromatography (IMAC) is a widely used technique for purifying polyhistidine-tagged recombinant proteins. However, it often has practical limitations that require complex optimizations and additional steps for purification. In this study, we introduce functionalized corundum particles as a novel, efficient, and economical method for purifying recombinant proteins in a column-free format. The corundum surface is modified with amino silane APTES, followed by EDTA dianhydride, and then loaded with nickel ions. We used the Kaiser test to monitor the modification process and ICP-MS to quantify the metal-binding capacity. To evaluate the system, we used His-tagged protein A/G (PAG) mixed with bovine serum albumin (BSA). The corundum particles exhibited a binding capacity of approximately 3 mg of protein per gram of corundum or 2.4 mg per 1 mL of corundum suspension. We also examined cytoplasm obtained from different E. coli strains as an example of a complex matrix. Varying the imidazole concentration in the loading and washing buffers showed that higher concentrations during loading improved purity. Even with sample volumes as large as one liter, we successfully isolated recombinant proteins down to a concentration of 1 µg/mL. We found higher purity levels with corundum when comparing the corundum material to standard Ni–NTA agarose beads. We successfully purified His6-MBP-mSA2, a fusion protein comprising monomeric streptavidin and maltose-binding protein, from E. coli cytoplasm, demonstrating the method's applicability. We also purified SARS-CoV-2-S-RBD-His8 expressed in human Expi293F cells, confirming its suitability for mammalian cell culture supernatants. The material cost of the nickel-loaded corundum material (without regeneration) is estimated to be less than 30 cents per gram of functionalized support or 10 cents per milligram of isolated protein. Another advantage of this system is the exceptional physical and chemical stability of corundum particles. Overall, we have demonstrated that this novel material offers an efficient, robust, and cost-effective purification platform for His-tagged proteins, even in challenging, complex matrices and large sample volumes with low product concentrations. This method has potential applications in both small laboratories and large-scale industrial settings. N2 - Die immobilisierte Metallaffinitätschromatographie (IMAC) ist eine weit verbreitete Technik zur Reinigung von rekombinanten Proteinen mit Polyhistidin-Markierung. Sie hat jedoch oft praktische Einschränkungen, die komplexe Optimierungen und zusätzliche Schritte für die Aufreinigung erfordern. In dieser Studie stellen wir funktionalisierte Korundpartikel als neuartige, effiziente und wirtschaftliche Methode zur Reinigung rekombinanter Proteine in einem säulenfreien Format vor. Die Korundoberfläche wird mit dem Aminosilan APTES und anschließend mit EDTA-Dianhydrid modifiziert und dann mit Nickelionen beladen. Wir haben den Kaiser-Test zur Überwachung des Modifizierungsprozesses und ICP-MS zur Quantifizierung der Metallbindungskapazität verwendet. Zur Charakterisierung des Systems verwendeten wir His-markiertes Protein A/G (PAG) in Kombination mit Rinderserumalbumin (BSA). Die Korundpartikel wiesen eine Bindungskapazität von etwa 3 mg Protein pro Gramm Korund oder 2,4 mg pro 1 ml Korundsuspension auf. Als Beispiel für eine komplexe Matrix untersuchten wir auch Zytoplasma, das aus verschiedenen E. coli-Stämmen gewonnen wurde. Die Variation der Imidazolkonzentration in den Lade- und Waschpuffern zeigte, dass höhere Konzentrationen beim Laden die Reinheit verbesserten. Selbst bei einem Probenvolumen von bis zu einem Liter konnten wir rekombinante Proteine von 1 µg/mL isolieren. Beim Vergleich des Korundmaterials mit Standard-Ni-NTA-Agarose-Beads stellten wir einen höheren Reinheitsgrad mit Korund fest. Wir reinigten erfolgreich His6-MBP-mSA2 aus E. coli-Zytoplasma, ein Fusionsprotein, das aus monomerem Streptavidin und Maltose-bindendem Protein besteht. Wir reinigten auch SARS-CoV-2-S-RBD-His8, das in humanen Expi293F-Zellen exprimiert wurde, und bestätigten damit die Eignung des Materials für Zellkulturüberstände von Säugetieren. Die Materialkosten für nickelbeladenen Korund (ohne Regenerierung) werden auf weniger als 30 Cent pro Gramm funktionalisierten Trägers oder 10 Cent pro Milligramm isolierten Proteins geschätzt. Ein weiterer Vorteil dieses Systems ist die außergewöhnliche physikalische und chemische Stabilität der Korundpartikel. Insgesamt haben wir gezeigt, dass dieses neuartige Material eine effiziente, robuste und kostengünstige Reinigungsplattform für His-markierte Proteine bietet, selbst bei schwierigen, komplexen Matrices und großen Probenmengen mit niedrigen Produktkonzentrationen. Diese Methode könnte sowohl in kleinen Labors als auch in der Großindustrie eingesetzt werden. KW - Aluminum oxide KW - Sapphire KW - Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid KW - Nickel chelate KW - EDTAD KW - HexaHis-Tag KW - His6 KW - 6xHis KW - His8 KW - Bioseparation KW - IMAC purification KW - Immunocapture KW - Affinity chromatography KW - Carrier KW - Nickel KW - Recombinant protein KW - Escherichia coli KW - Bacterial lysates KW - Cytoplasm KW - Polishing KW - Downstream processing PY - 2023 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-575672 DO - https://doi.org/10.3390/biotech12020031 VL - 12 IS - 2 SP - 1 EP - 18 PB - MDPI CY - Basel, Schweiz AN - OPUS4-57567 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Fischer, Janina A1 - Kaufmann, Jan Ole A1 - Weller, Michael G. T1 - Simple Determination of Affinity Constants of Antibodies by Competitive Immunoassays N2 - The affinity constant, also known as the equilibrium constant, binding constant, equilibrium association constant, or the reciprocal value, the equilibrium dissociation constant (Kd), can be considered as one of the most important characteristics for any antibody–antigen pair. Many methods based on different technologies have been proposed and used to determine this value. However, since a very large number of publications and commercial datasheets do not include this information, significant obstacles in performing such measurements seem to exist. In other cases where such data are reported, the results have often proved to be unreliable. This situation may indicate that most of the technologies available today require a high level of expertise and effort that does not seem to be available in many laboratories. In this paper, we present a simple approach based on standard immunoassay technology that is easy and quick to perform. It relies on the effect that the molar IC50 approaches the Kd value in the case of infinitely small concentrations of the reagents. A two-dimensional dilution of the reagents leads to an asymptotic convergence to Kd. The approach has some similarity to the well-known checkerboard titration used for the optimization of immunoassays. A well-known antibody against the FLAG peptide, clone M2, was used as a model system and the results were compared with other methods. This approach could be used in any case where a competitive assay is available or can be developed. The determination of an affinity constant should belong to the crucial parameters in any quality control of antibody-related products and assays and should be mandatory in papers using immunochemical protocols. N2 - Die Affinitätskonstante, auch bekannt als Gleichgewichtskonstante, Bindungskonstante, Gleichgewichtsassoziationskonstante oder der reziproke Wert, die Gleichgewichtsdissoziationskonstante (Kd), kann als eine der wichtigsten Eigenschaften für jedes Antikörper-Antigen-Paar angesehen werden. Zur Bestimmung dieses Wertes wurden zahlreiche Methoden auf der Grundlage verschiedener Technologien vorgeschlagen und verwendet. Da jedoch eine sehr große Anzahl von Veröffentlichungen und kommerziellen Datenblätter diese Information nicht enthalten, scheint es erhebliche Hindernisse bei der Durchführung solcher Messungen zu geben. In anderen Fällen, in denen solche Daten angegeben werden, haben sich die Ergebnisse häufig als unzuverlässig erwiesen. Diese Situation könnte darauf hindeuten, dass die meisten der heute verfügbaren Technologien ein hohes Maß an Fachwissen und Aufwand erfordern, das in vielen Labors nicht vorhanden zu sein scheint. In diesem Beitrag stellen wir einen einfachen Ansatz vor, der auf der Standard-Immunoassay-Technologie basiert und einfach und schnell durchführbar ist. Er beruht auf dem Effekt, dass sich der molare IC50 bei unendlich kleinen Reagenz-Konzentrationen dem Kd-Wert annähert. Eine zweidimensionale Verdünnung der Reagenzien führt zu einer asymptotischen Konvergenz zu Kd. Der Ansatz hat eine gewisse Ähnlichkeit mit der bekannten Checkerboard-Titration, die zur Optimierung von Immunoassays verwendet wird. Ein bekannter Antikörper gegen das FLAG-Peptid, Klon M2, wurde als Modellsystem verwendet, und die Ergebnisse wurden mit anderen Methoden verglichen. Dieser Ansatz kann überall dort angewendet werden, wo ein kompetitiver Assay verfügbar ist oder entwickelt werden kann. Die Bestimmung einer Affinitätskonstante sollte zu den entscheidenden Parametern bei der Qualitätskontrolle von Antikörperprodukten und -assays gehören und in Arbeiten, die immunchemische Protokolle verwenden, obligatorisch sein. KW - ELISA KW - Competitive immunoassay KW - IC50 KW - Test midpoint KW - Point of inflection KW - Equilibrium constant KW - Dissociation constant KW - Binding strength KW - Antibody antigen complex KW - Bio-interaction KW - SPR KW - Surface-plasmon resonance KW - FLAG peptide KW - Clone M2 KW - Antibody quality PY - 2024 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-605607 DO - https://doi.org/10.3390/mps7030049 SN - 2409-9279 VL - 7 IS - 3 SP - 1 EP - 11 PB - MDPI CY - Basel AN - OPUS4-60560 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Mangarova, Dilyana Branimirova A1 - Reimann, Carolin A1 - Kaufmann, Jan Ole A1 - Möckel, Jana A1 - Kader, Avan A1 - Adams, Lisa Christine A1 - Ludwig, Antje A1 - Onthank, David A1 - Robinson, Simon A1 - Karst, Uwe A1 - Helmer, Rebecca A1 - Botnar, Rene A1 - Hamm, Bernd A1 - Makowski, Marcus Richard A1 - Brangsch, Julia T1 - Elastin-specific MR probe for visualization and evaluation of an interleukin-1β targeted therapy for atherosclerosis N2 - Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory condition of the arteries and represents the primary cause of various cardiovascular diseases. Despite ongoing progress, finding effective anti-inflammatory therapeutic strategies for atherosclerosis remains a challenge. Here, we assessed the potential of molecular magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to visualize the effects of 01BSUR, an anti-interleukin-1β monoclonal antibody, for treating atherosclerosis in a murine model. Male apolipoprotein E-deficient mice were divided into a therapy group (01BSUR, 2 × 0.3 mg/kg subcutaneously, n = 10) and control group (no treatment, n = 10) and received a high-fat diet for eight weeks. The plaque burden was assessed using an elastin-targeted gadolinium-based contrast probe (0.2 mmol/kg intravenously) on a 3 T MRI scanner. T1-weighted imaging showed a significantly lower contrast-to-noise (CNR) ratio in the 01BSUR group (pre: 3.93042664; post: 8.4007067) compared to the control group (pre: 3.70679168; post: 13.2982156) following administration of the elastin-specific MRI probe (p < 0.05). Histological examinations demonstrated a significant reduction in plaque size (p < 0.05) and a significant decrease in plaque elastin content (p < 0.05) in the treatment group compared to control animals. This study demonstrated that 01BSUR hinders the progression of atherosclerosis in a mouse model. Using an elastin-targeted MRI probe, we could quantify these therapeutic effects in MRI. N2 - Atherosklerose ist eine chronische entzündliche Erkrankung der Arterien und die Hauptursache für verschiedene Herz-Kreislauf-Erkrankungen. Trotz kontinuierlicher Fortschritte ist es nach wie vor schwierig, wirksame entzündungshemmende Therapiestrategien für Atherosklerose zu finden. In dieser Studie haben wir das Potenzial der molekularen Magnetresonanztomographie (MRT) zur Visualisierung der Wirkung von 01BSUR, einem monoklonalen Anti-Interleukin-1β-Antikörper, zur Behandlung von Atherosklerose in einem Mausmodell untersucht. Männliche Apolipoprotein-E-defiziente Mäuse wurden in eine Therapiegruppe (01BSUR, 2 × 0,3 mg/kg subkutan, n = 10) und eine Kontrollgruppe (keine Behandlung, n = 10) aufgeteilt und erhielten acht Wochen lang eine fettreiche Diät. Die Plaquebelastung wurde mit einer auf Elastin ausgerichteten Kontrastmittelsonde auf Gadoliniumbasis (0,2 mmol/kg intravenös) auf einem 3-T-MRT-Scanner untersucht. Die T1-gewichtete Bildgebung zeigte ein signifikant niedrigeres Kontrast-Rausch-Verhältnis (CNR) in der 01BSUR-Gruppe (vorher: 3,93042664; nachher: 8,4007067) im Vergleich zur Kontrollgruppe (vorher: 3,70679168; nachher: 13,2982156) nach Verabreichung der Elastin-spezifischen MRT-Sonde (p < 0,05). Histologische Untersuchungen zeigten eine signifikante Verringerung der Plaque-Größe (p < 0,05) und eine signifikante Abnahme des Plaque-Elastin-Gehalts (p < 0,05) in der Behandlungsgruppe im Vergleich zu den Kontrolltieren. Diese Studie zeigte, dass 01BSUR das Fortschreiten der Atherosklerose in einem Mausmodell hemmt. Mit einer auf Elastin ausgerichteten MRT-Sonde konnten wir diese therapeutischen Effekte in der MRT quantifizieren. KW - Atherosclerosis KW - Molecular imaging KW - Elastin KW - Plaque KW - Interleukin-1beta PY - 2024 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-610858 DO - https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-71716-5 VL - 14 IS - 1 SP - 1 EP - 11 PB - Springer Science and Business Media LLC AN - OPUS4-61085 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kader, A. A1 - Snellings, J. A1 - Adams, L. C. A1 - Gottheil, P. A1 - Mangarova, D. B. A1 - Heyl, J. L. A1 - Kaufmann, Jan Ole A1 - Moeckel, J. A1 - Brangsch, J. A1 - Auer, T. A. A1 - Collettini, F. A1 - Sauer, F. A1 - Hamm, B. A1 - Käs, J. A1 - Sack, I. A1 - Makowski, M. R. A1 - Braun, J. T1 - Sensitivity of magnetic resonance elastography to extracellular matrix and cell motility in human prostate cancer cell line-derived xenograft models N2 - Prostate cancer (PCa) is a significant health problem in the male population of the Western world. Magnetic resonance elastography (MRE), an emerging medical imaging technique sensitive to mechanical properties of biological tissues, detects PCa based on abnormally high stiffness and viscosity values. Yet, the origin of these changes in tissue properties and how they correlate with histopathological markers and tumor aggressiveness are largely unknown, hindering the use of tumor biomechanical properties for establishing a noninvasive PCa staging system. To infer the contributions of extracellular matrix (ECM) components and cell motility, we investigated fresh tissue specimens from two PCa xenograft mouse models, PC3 and LNCaP, using magnetic resonance elastography (MRE), diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI), quantitative histology, and nuclear shape analysis. Increased tumor stiffness and impaired water diffusion were observed to be associated with collagen and elastin accumulation and decreased cell motility. Overall, LNCaP, while more representative of clinical PCa than PC3, accumulated fewer ECM components, induced less restriction of water diffusion, and exhibited increased cell motility, resulting in overall softer and less viscous properties. Taken together, our results suggest that prostate tumor stiffness increases with ECM accumulation and cell adhesion - characteristics that influence critical biological processes of cancer development. MRE paired with DWI provides a powerful set of imaging markers that can potentially predict prostate tumor development from benign masses to aggressive malignancies in patients. Statement of significance: Xenograft models of human prostate tumor cell lines, allowing correlation of microstructure-sensitive biophysical imaging parameters with quantitative histological methods, can be investigated to identify hallmarks of cancer. KW - Magnetic resonance elastography KW - Quantitative histology KW - Prostate cancer KW - Stiffness KW - Fluidity KW - Apparent diffusion coefficient KW - Collagen KW - Elastin KW - Nuclear shape PY - 2024 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-618361 DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bioadv.2024.213884 SN - 2772-9508 VL - 161 SP - 1 EP - 12 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam AN - OPUS4-61836 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bosc-Bierne, Gaby A1 - Ewald, Shireen A1 - Kreuzer, Oliver J. A1 - Weller, Michael G. T1 - Efficient Quality Control of Peptide Pools by UHPLC and Simultaneous UV and HRMS Detection N2 - Peptide pools consist of short amino acid sequences and have proven to be versatile tools in various research areas in immunology and clinical applications. They are commercially available in many different compositions and variants. However, unlike other reagents that consist of only one or a few compounds, peptide pools are highly complex products which makes their quality control a major challenge. Quantitative peptide analysis usually requires sophisticated methods, in most cases isotope-labeled standards and reference materials. Usually, this would be prohibitively laborious and expensive. Therefore, an approach is needed to provide a practical and feasible method for quality control of peptide pools. With insufficient quality control, the use of such products could lead to incorrect experimental results, worsening the well-known reproducibility crisis in the biomedical sciences. Here we propose the use of ultra-high performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) with two detectors, a standard UV detector at 214 nm for quantitative analysis and a high-resolution mass spectrometer (HRMS) for identity confirmation. To be cost-efficient and fast, quantification and identification are performed in one chromatographic run. An optimized protocol is shown, and different peak integration methods are compared and discussed. This work was performed using a peptide pool known as CEF advanced, which consists of 32 peptides derived from cytomegalovirus (CMV), Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) and influenza virus, ranging from 8 to 12 amino acids in length. N2 - Peptidpools bestehen aus kurzen Aminosäuresequenzen und haben sich als vielseitige Werkzeuge in verschiedenen Forschungsbereichen der Immunologie und bei klinischen Anwendungen erwiesen. Sie sind in vielen verschiedenen Zusammensetzungen und Varianten im Handel erhältlich. Im Gegensatz zu anderen Reagenzien, die nur aus einer oder wenigen Verbindungen bestehen, sind Peptidpools jedoch hochkomplexe Produkte, was ihre Qualitätskontrolle zu einer großen Herausforderung macht. Die quantitative Peptidanalyse erfordert in der Regel ausgefeilte Methoden, in den meisten Fällen isotopenmarkierte Standards und Referenzmaterialien. Dies ist in der Regel sehr aufwändig und teuer. Daher wird ein Ansatz benötigt, der eine praktische und praktikable Methode zur Qualitätskontrolle von Peptidpools bietet. Bei unzureichender Qualitätskontrolle könnte die Verwendung solcher Produkte zu falschen Versuchsergebnissen führen, was das bekannte Problem der Reproduzierbarkeit in den biomedizinischen Wissenschaften noch verschärfen würde. Hier schlagen wir die Verwendung der Ultrahochleistungs-Flüssigkeitschromatographie (UHPLC) mit zwei Detektoren vor, einem Standard-UV-Detektor bei 214 nm für die quantitative Analyse und einem hochauflösenden Massenspektrometer (HRMS) für die Identitätsbestätigung. Um kosteneffizient und schnell zu sein, werden Quantifizierung und Identifizierung in einem einzigen chromatographischen Lauf durchgeführt. Es wird ein optimiertes Protokoll gezeigt, und es werden verschiedene Peak-Integrationsmethoden verglichen und diskutiert. Für diese Arbeit wurde ein Peptidpool verwendet, der als CEF advanced bekannt ist und aus 32 Peptiden besteht, die vom Cytomegalovirus (CMV), Epstein-Barr-Virus (EBV) und Influenzavirus stammen und zwischen 8 und 12 Aminosäuren lang sind. KW - Synthetic peptides KW - Quality control KW - Impurites KW - Byproducts KW - Degradation KW - Mass spectrometry KW - Orbitrap PY - 2024 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-602299 DO - https://doi.org/10.3390/separations11050156 SN - 2297-8739 VL - 11 IS - 5 SP - 1 EP - 18 PB - MDPI CY - Basel AN - OPUS4-60229 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bosc-Bierne, Gaby A1 - Weller, Michael G. T1 - Investigation of impurities in peptide pools T1 - Untersuchung von Verunreinigungen in Peptidpools N2 - Peptide pools are important research tools in different biomedical fields. They consist of a complex mixture of defined peptides, which places high demands on the production and quality control of these products. Previously it has been shown that the combination of UHPLC with high-resolution mass-spectrometry (HRMS) is a fast and powerful method to confirm the relative concentration and the structural identity of all peptides expected to be in the pool. In this work, the additional information contained in the UV chromatograms and mass spectra is used to search for impurities due to synthesis by-products and degradation during storage and transportation and to identify possible analytical artifacts. It was shown that most impurities are only present in trace amounts and can be considered uncritical for most applications. The most frequent and perhaps unexpected impurities were homo- and heterodimers caused by the free cysteines contained in these peptide pools. Furthermore, pyroglutamate and aspartimide formation, deamidation, methionine oxidation, and amino acid deletions could be found. This list is not intended to be comprehensive, but rather a brief guide to quickly identify impurities and, in the long term, to suggest possible changes in the composition of the peptide pools to avoid such impurities by design or by special precautions. N2 - Peptidpools sind wichtige Forschungsinstrumente in verschiedenen biomedizinischen Bereichen. Sie bestehen aus einer komplexen Mischung definierter Peptide, was hohe Anforderungen an die Herstellung und Qualitätskontrolle dieser Produkte stellt. In der Vergangenheit wurde gezeigt, dass die Kombination von UHPLC mit hochauflösender Massenspektrometrie (HRMS) eine schnelle und leistungsfähige Methode zur Bestätigung der relativen Konzentration und der strukturellen Identität aller Peptide ist, die in dem Pool erwartet werden. In dieser Arbeit werden die zusätzlichen Informationen, die in den UV-Chromatogrammen und Massenspektren enthalten sind, genutzt, um nach Verunreinigungen zu suchen, die auf Nebenprodukte der Synthese und den Abbau während der Lagerung und des Transports zurückzuführen sind, und um mögliche analytische Artefakte zu identifizieren. Es hat sich gezeigt, dass die meisten Verunreinigungen nur in Spuren vorhanden sind und für die meisten Anwendungen als unkritisch angesehen werden können. Die häufigsten und vielleicht unerwartetsten Verunreinigungen waren Homo- und Heterodimere, die durch die in diesen Peptidpools enthaltenen freien Cysteine verursacht werden. Außerdem wurden Pyroglutamat- und Aspartimidbildung, Deamidierung, Methioninoxidation und Aminosäuredeletionen festgestellt. Diese Liste erhebt keinen Anspruch auf Vollständigkeit, sondern ist eher ein kurzer Leitfaden, um Verunreinigungen schnell zu identifizieren und langfristig mögliche Änderungen in der Zusammensetzung der Peptidpools vorzuschlagen, um solche Verunreinigungen durch Design oder besondere Vorsichtsmaßnahmen zu vermeiden. KW - Synthetic peptides KW - Degradation KW - Synthetic artifacts KW - Peptide losses KW - Stability of peptides KW - Disulfide dimers KW - Cysteine dimers KW - Isomers KW - Cysteine alkylation PY - 2025 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-626987 DO - https://doi.org/10.3390/separations12020036 SN - 2297-8739 VL - 12 IS - 2 SP - 1 EP - 18 PB - MDPI AG CY - Basel AN - OPUS4-62698 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Tchipilov, Teodor A1 - Meyer, Klas A1 - Weller, Michael G. T1 - Quantitative 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (qNMR) of aromatic amino acids for protein quantification N2 - Hydrolysis of protein samples into amino acids facilitates the use of NMR spectroscopy for protein and peptide quantification. Different conditions have been tested for quantifying aromatic amino acids and proteins. The pH-dependent signal shifts in the aromatic region of amino acid samples were examined. A pH of 12 was found to minimize signal overlap of the four aromatic amino acids. Several aromatic compounds, such as terephthalic acid, sulfoisophthalic acid, and benzene tricarboxylic acid, were applied as internal standards. The quantification of amino acids from an amino acid standard 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 - Aromatic amino acid analysis KW - AAA KW - AAAA KW - Protein hydrolysis KW - Hydrochloric acid KW - Metrology KW - Traceability KW - NIST KW - Reference materials KW - Internal standard KW - Calibration KW - Compound-independent calibration KW - Histidine KW - Tyrosine KW - Tryptophan KW - Phenylalanine KW - Terephthalic acid KW - Benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxylic acid KW - Bovine serum albumin (BSA) KW - Quantitative protein analysis KW - Phenylketonuria PY - 2023 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-570943 DO - https://doi.org/10.3390/mps6010011 VL - 6 IS - 1 SP - 1 EP - 13 PB - MDPI CY - Basel, Schweiz AN - OPUS4-57094 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kader, A. A1 - Kaufmann, Jan Ole A1 - Mangarova, D. B. A1 - Moeckel, J. A1 - Brangsch, J. A1 - Adams, L. C. A1 - Zhao, J. A1 - Reimann, C. A1 - Saatz, Jessica A1 - Traub, Heike A1 - Buchholz, R. A1 - Karst, U. A1 - Hamm, B. A1 - Makowski, M. R. T1 - Iron Oxide Nanoparticles for Visualization of Prostate Cancer in MRI N2 - Prostate cancer (PCa) is one of the most common cancers in men. For detection and diagnosis of PCa, non-invasive methods, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), can reduce the risk potential of surgical intervention. To explore the molecular characteristics of the tumor, we investigated the applicability of ferumoxytol in PCa in a xenograft mouse model in two different tumor volumes, 500 mm3 and 1000 mm3. Macrophages play a key role in tumor progression, and they are able to internalize iron-oxide particles, such as ferumoxytol. When evaluating T2*-weighted sequences on MRI, a significant decrease of signal intensity between pre- and post-contrast images for each tumor volume (n = 14; p < 0.001) was measured. We, furthermore, observed a higher signal loss for a tumor volume of 500 mm3 than for 1000 mm3. These findings were confirmed by histological examinations and laser ablation inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry. The 500 mm3 tumors had 1.5% iron content (n = 14; sigma = 1.1), while the 1000 mm3 tumors contained only 0.4% iron (n = 14; sigma = 0.2). In vivo MRI data demonstrated a correlation with the ex vivo data (R2 = 0.75). The results of elemental analysis by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry correlated strongly with the MRI data (R2 = 0.83) (n = 4). Due to its long retention time in the blood, biodegradability, and low toxicity to patients, ferumoxytol has great potential as a contrast agent for visualization PCa. KW - Imaging KW - Nanoparticle KW - Cancer KW - Iron oxide KW - ICP-MS KW - Magnetic resonance imaging PY - 2022 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-550075 DO - https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers14122909 VL - 14 IS - 12 SP - 1 EP - 13 PB - MDPI CY - Basel, Switzerland AN - OPUS4-55007 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -