Comprehensive Protocol to Simultaneously Study Protein Phosphorylation, Acetylation, and N-Linked Sialylated Glycosylation

Post-translational modifications (PTMs) such as phosphorylation, acetylation, and glycosylation are an essential regulatory mechanism of protein function and they are associated with a range of biological processes. Since most PTMs alter the molecular mass of a protein, mass spectrometry (MS) is the ideal analytical tool for studying various PTMs. However, PTMs are generally present in substoichiometric levels and therefore their unmodified counterpart often suppresses their signal in MS. Consequently, PTM analysis by MS is a challenging task requiring highly specialized and sensitive enrichment methods. Currently, several methods have been implemented for PTM enrichment and each of them has its drawbacks and advantages as they differ in selectivity and specificity toward specific protein modifications. Unfortunately, for most of the more than 300 known modifications we have none or poor tools for selective enrichment.
Source: Springer protocols feed by Protein Science - Category: Biochemistry Source Type: news