We acknowledge MHRD-UAY Project (UCHHATAR AVISHKAR YOJANA), project #34_IITB to SS and MASSFIITB Facility at IIT Bombay supported by the Department of Biotechnology (BT/PR13114/INF/22/206/2015) to carry out all MS-related experiments.
We extend our special thanks to Mr. Rishabh Yadav for making and editing of the entire video and Mr. Nishant Nerurkar for his work in editing the audio.

This study involves brain tissue samples from human participants, reviewed and approved by TMH and IITB IEC - (IITB-IEC/2018/019). The participants provided their informed and written consent to participate in this study.
1&#160;Protein extraction from brain tissue
<ol>
	<li>Weigh around 50 mg of brain tissue and wash the tissue with 300 &#181;L of 1x phosphate buffer saline (PBS) using a micropipette. 
	NOTE: This step is performed to remove any blood on the external surface of the tissue and must be repeated if necessary. It is advisable to remove as much blood from tissue as possible as it interferes with downstream protein estimation and processing.</li>
	<li>Following washes with PBS, add 300 &#181;L of lysis buffer (Buffer A) to the tube containing the tissue. Buffer A contains 8 M urea, 50 mM Tris pH 8.0, 75 mM NaCl, 1 mM MgCl2 and Protease inhibitor cocktail (as per manufacturer&#39;s instructions). 
	NOTE: Protein yield varies depending on several factors ranging from the conditions in which the samples are stored, the amount of starting material and the efficiency of handling the samples while processing. Reduce the volume of buffer A proportionately when working with amounts of tissue lower than 50 mg.</li>
	<li>Lyse the tissue using a probe sonicator while keeping the tube on an ice bath. Use the following parameters for sonication: 40% amplitude, 5 seconds on and off cycle for 2:30 min.</li>
	<li>Continue with tissue homogenization using a bead beater to completely lyse the tissue. 
	NOTE: This step should be performed at medium speed for 90 seconds followed by incubation on ice for 3-5 minutes.</li>
	<li>Centrifuge the contents of the tube at 6,000 x g for 15 min at 4 &#176;C. Transfer the supernatant into a fresh tube and mix homogeneously. 
	&#8203;NOTE: Make aliquots of the sample and store at -80&#176;C until further use.</li>
</ol>
2 Protein quantification and quality check
<ol>
	<li>Quantify the samples prior to digestion using a standard graph made with known concentrations of BSA. 
	&#8203;NOTE: Ensure that the assay being used for protein estimation is compatible with the buffer used for making the protein lysate. Check the quality of the protein lysate by running an SDS-PAGE gel.</li>
</ol>
3 Protein digestion
<ol>
	<li>Take 50 &#181;g of protein in a micro-centrifuge tube and reduce the proteins by adding Tris 2-carboxyethyl phosphine (TCEP) such that the final concentration is 20 mM. Incubate the contents at 37 &#176;C for 1 h.</li>
	<li>Following incubation, alkylate the reduced proteins by adding iodoacetamide (IAA) to the tube such that its final concentration is 40 mM. Incubate the tube in dark for 30 minutes. 
	NOTE: Prepare IAA freshly right before its addition to the tube.</li>
	<li>Add buffer B to the tube containing the reduced and alkylated proteins such that the final concentration of urea in the tube is less than 1 M. 
	NOTE: Buffer B is composed of 25 mM Tris (pH 8.0) and 1 mM CaCl2 and is used for diluting the samples. Upon dilution, ensure that the contents of the tube have a pH of 8 for optimum protein digestion after addition of trypsin.</li>
	<li>Add trypsin in a 1:30 enzyme to protein ratio and incubate the tubes overnight at 37 &#176;C with constant shaking.</li>
	<li>Following digestion, concentrate the digested product in a vacuum concentrator. At this step, the peptides can either be reconstituted and desalted or stored at -80 &#176;C for future use.</li>
</ol>
4 Desalting and peptide quantification
NOTE: Desalting or peptide clean-up is essential before loading the samples for&#160;LC-MS/MS. Salts and other contaminants in the sample can clog the columns and cause damage to the instrument as well. The process can be performed using commercially available C18 stage-tips or columns.
<ol>
	<li>Activate the stage tip with 20 &#181;L of 50% acetonitrile (ACN) in 0.1% formic acid (FA). Centrifuge the contents at 1,000 x g for 1 minute and discard the flow through. 
	NOTE: Conditions for centrifugation are the same till the end of the procedure.</li>
	<li>Add 20 &#181;L of 100% ACN in 0.1% FA and centrifuge the contents as in step 4.1. 
	NOTE: Activation steps can be repeated a couple of times.</li>
	<li>Following activation, pass 20 &#181;L of reconstituted peptide sample through the stage-tip and centrifuge as performed in step 4.1. 
	NOTE: Do not discard the flow through in this step.</li>
	<li>Repeat step 4.3 with the flow through at least 5 times to ensure maximal peptide binding to the stage-tip.</li>
	<li>Pass 20 &#181;L of 0.1% FA through the stage-tip and discard the flow through. 
	NOTE: Repeat this step two more times for better results.</li>
	<li>Elute the bound peptides in a fresh microfuge tube by passing increasing concentrations of ACN, i.e., 40%, 60% and 80%, respectively.</li>
	<li>Dry the peptides in a vacuum concentrator and proceed for peptide quantification.</li>
	<li>Reconstitute the dried peptides in 0.1% FA and quantify using the Scopes method5.</li>
</ol>
5 Transition list preparation of finalized targets
NOTE: A transition refers to the pair of precursors (Q1) to product (Q3) m/z values in an MRM experiment. A peptide can have one to many transitions, with the same Q1 value but different Q3 values. A triple quadrupole mass spectrometer requires information of the transitions for the peptides and their products to be detected. Hence, before starting a targeted experiment, a transition list needs to be prepared. This can be done using the online repository of SRMAtlas6 (https://db.systemsbiology.net/sbeams/cgi/PeptideAtlas/GetTransitions)&#160;or an open source software called Skyline7 (https://skyline.ms/project/home/software/Skyline/begin.view).
<ol>
	<li>Download the recent human proteome FASTA file from UniProt (https://www.uniprot.org/) and create a background proteome file by inserting it in Skyline. In peptide settings, go to the Background Proteome dropdown and click on Add. Feed in the FASTA sequence file of the human proteome. Make sure this database is selected and the allowed missed cleavage value is set to 0 before proceeding to the next step.</li>
	<li>Now, under the Filter tab in Peptide Settings delimit the length of accepted peptides from 8 to 25 amino acids.</li>
	<li>In Transition Settings, under Filter tab set Precursor Charges as 2,3, set Ion Charges as 1 and set Ion Types to y. Product ions can be selected depending on the user&#39;s choice. Select N-terminal to proline for special ions and leave all other parameters as default. 
	NOTE: The peptide and transition settings can vary according to the experiment.</li>
	<li>Insert the peptides or proteins of interest by clicking on Edit and moving to Insert. To insert proteins, copy their accession IDs and to insert specific peptides, copy the peptide sequences.The software maps the accession IDs to the background proteome and the transition list is created based on the peptide and transition settings.</li>
	<li>Export the transition list. Ensure that in the dropdown for Instrument Type, the right instrument is selected. For the optimization experiments, one may choose to split the transition lists into smaller numbers by setting the desired number of transitions per file in Skyline. This will ensure that the instrument is not overwhelmed to screen too many transitions in a single run. The number of transitions needs to be further optimized to get a single method - this we mention henceforth under the method refinement section.</li>
</ol>
6 LC parameters
<ol>
	<li>Use a binary solvent system with the aqueous solvent containing 0.1% FA (Solvent A) and the organic solvent containing 80% ACN (Solvent B).</li>
	<li>Set the column temperature to 45 &#176;C.</li>
	<li>Set an LC gradient of 10 min with a 450 &#181;L/min flowrate (as shown in Table S1).</li>
</ol>
7 MS parameters
NOTE: The explained assay has been developed and optimized for TSQ Altis Triple Quadrupole Mass Spectrometer.
<ol>
	<li>Optimize runs parameters like Q1 and Q3 resolution, dwell time and cycle time - one parameter at a time. We find that 0.7 resolution for Q1 and Q3 works best. The cycle time or dwell time might need to be tweaked according to the number of transitions and average peak width of the peptides being monitored.</li>
	<li>Use the MS parameters in Table S2 and Table S3. The total method duration is 10 min. 
	&#8203;NOTE: The parameters remain same for all the runs during and after method refinement, unless mentioned otherwise. For a fresh experiment, there may be a need to change certain parameters depending on the type of the sample and sample processing steps.</li>
</ol>
8 Run sequence and Instrument QC
<ol>
	<li>Prepare a mixture of water: methanol: isopropanol: acetonitrile in 1:1:1:1 ratio. Use this mixture as a blank.</li>
	<li>Prepare peptides for any standard sample that can be used to consistently monitor the performance of the instrument. This will be used as a QC standard. We detect peptides from BSA digests that have been optimized and give good and consistent response over several days (Figure 2).</li>
	<li>To run samples, the sequence should start with a couple of blanks, followed by the QC standard and clinical samples. Always ensure there is one blank between two consecutive samples.</li>
	<li>For the ease of comparison, ensure equal amounts and volumes of each sample are injected every time.</li>
</ol>
9 Method refinement
<ol>
	<li>Analyze the preliminary data obtained from the pooled samples using Skyline. Look for the right peak, transitions, and parameters such as peak shape and intensity to select the best results. Save the file as a new Skyline project.</li>
	<li>Use a library to find the best matching peak and consequently the best possible transition list is advised. A library is a set of MS/MS peaks available from literature or in-house experiments.</li>
	<li>Export a fresh transition list from the newly saved Skyline project and use this transition list to make a fresh method. Acquire data from the new method created and repeat the process of refining the transitions using Skyline.</li>
	<li>Once the list of peptides and transitions is finalized following data analysis using Skyline, fine tune the method by trying out different permutations of cycle time and dwell time. 
	&#8203;NOTE: The use of heavy labelled synthetic peptides and indexed retention time (iRT) peptides makes method refinement easy8, 9. It is hence advisable that fine tuning of the method be performed using these peptides.</li>
	<li>Using the retention time information from the refinement experiments, create a final method that is scheduled (having a defined acquisition window).</li>
	<li>Prepare samples for individual subjects. Data will be acquired for these samples using the final scheduled method.</li>
	<li>Once the data is acquired, further downstream analysis and group-wise comparison can be performed by importing the raw files to Skyline.</li>
</ol>

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The authors received support from Thermofisher for the publication fee.

Techniques like Immunohistochemistry and Western blotting were considered as the gold standards for validation of protein targets for many years.&#160;These methods find use even today with minor modifications in the protocol and little dependence on technology making them very cumbersome and tedious. Besides this, they also involve the use of expensive antibodies which do not always show the same specificity across batches and require a great deal of expertise. Additionally, only a small fraction of proteins identified ...

During the last decade, rapid developments in mass spectrometry (MS) coupled with increased understanding of chromatography techniques have greatly helped in advancement of MS-based proteomics. Molecular biology-based techniques such as western blotting and immunohistochemistry have long suffered from reproducibility issues, slow turnaround time, inter-observer variability and their inability to accurately quantify proteins, to name a few. To this end, the superior sensitivity of high-throughput proteomics approaches continues to offer molecular biologists an alternate and more reliable tool in their quest to better understand the roles of proteins in cells. However, shotgun proteomics approaches (Data dependent Acquisition or DDA) often fail to detect low abundant proteins in complex tissues besides being heavily reliant on the sensitivity and resolution of the instrument. Over the last couple of years, labs around the world have been developing techniques like Data Independent Acquisition (DIA) that require increased computing power and reliable software that can handle these highly complex datasets. However, these techniques are still a work in progress and not very user friendly. Targeted MS-based proteomics approaches provide a perfect balance between the high throughput nature of MS approaches and the sensitivity of molecular biology approaches like ELISA. A targeted mass spectrometry-based proteomics experiment focuses on detecting hypothesis driven proteins or peptides from discovery-based-shotgun proteomics experiments or through available literature1,2. Multiple Reaction Monitoring (MRM) is one such targeted MS approach that uses a tandem quadrupole mass spectrometer for accurate detection and quantification of proteins/peptides from complex samples. The technique offers higher sensitivity and specificity despite requiring the use of a low-resolution instrument.
A quadrupole is made of 4 parallel rods, with each rod connected to the diagonally opposite rod. A fluctuating field is created between the quadrupole rods by applying alternating RF and DC voltages. The trajectory of the ions inside the quadrupole is influenced by the presence of the same voltages across opposite rods. By applying the RF to DC voltage, the trajectory of the ions can be stabilized. It is this property of the quadrupole that allows it to be used as a mass filter which can selectively let specific ions to pass through. Depending on the need, a quadrupole can be operated in either the static mode or the scanning mode. The static mode allows only ions with a specified m/z to pass through, making the mode highly selective and specific to the ion of interest. The scanning mode on the other hand allows ions across the entire m/z range to pass through. Thus, tandem quadrupole mass spectrometers can operate in 4 possible ways: i) the first quadrupole operating in the static mode while the second operating in scanning mode; ii) the first quadrupole operating in the scanning mode while the second operating in the static mode; iii) both quadrupoles operating in the scanning mode; and iv) both quadrupoles operating in static mode3. In a typical MRM experiment, both the quadrupoles operate in the static mode allowing specific precursors and their resulting products after fragmentation to be monitored. This makes the technique very sensitive and selective allowing accurate quantification.
For molecular biologists, the human brain tissue and its cells are a treasure trove. These remarkable units of an ever-interesting organ of the human body can provide molecular and cellular insights into its functioning. Proteomic investigations of the brain tissue can not only help us understand the systemic functioning of a healthy brain but also the cellular pathways that get dysregulated when inflicted by some disease4. However, the brain tissue with all its heterogeneity is a very complex organ to analyze and requires a concerted approach for a better understanding of the changes at the molecular level. The following work describes the entire workflow starting right from extracting proteins from brain tissue, creating and optimising the methods for MRM assay, to validation of the targets (Figure 1). Here, we have systematically highlighted the major steps involved in a successful MRM based experiment using human brain tissue with an aim to introduce the technique and its challenges to a broader research community.

<table border="1" fo:keep-together.within-page="1" fo:keep-with-next.within-page="always">
	<tbody>
		<tr>
			<td>Reagents</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Acetonitrile (MS grade)</td>
			<td>Fisher Scientific</td>
			<td>A/0620/21</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Bovine Serum Albumin</td>
			<td>HiMedia</td>
			<td>TC194-25G</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Calcium chloride</td>
			<td>Fischer Scienific</td>
			<td>BP510-500</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Formic acid (MS grade)</td>
			<td>Fisher Scientific</td>
			<td>147930250</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Iodoacetamide</td>
			<td>Sigma</td>
			<td>1149-25G</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Isopropanol (MS grade)</td>
			<td>Fisher Scientific</td>
			<td>Q13827</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Magnesium Chloride</td>
			<td>Fischer Scienific</td>
			<td>BP214-500</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Methanol (MS grade)</td>
			<td>Fisher Scientific</td>
			<td>A456-4</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>MS grade water</td>
			<td>Pierce</td>
			<td>51140</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Phosphate Buffer Saline</td>
			<td>HiMedia</td>
			<td>TL1006-500ML</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Protease inhibitor cocktail</td>
			<td>Roche Diagnostics</td>
			<td>11873580001</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Sodium Chloride</td>
			<td>Merck</td>
			<td>DF6D661300</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>TCEP</td>
			<td>Sigma</td>
			<td>646547</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Tris Base</td>
			<td>Merck</td>
			<td>648310</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Trypsin (MS grade)</td>
			<td>Pierce</td>
			<td>90058</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Urea</td>
			<td>Merck</td>
			<td>MB1D691237</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Supplies</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Hypersil Gold C18 column</td>
			<td>Thermo</td>
			<td>25002-102130</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Micropipettes</td>
			<td>Gilson</td>
			<td>F167380</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Stage tips</td>
			<td>MilliPore</td>
			<td>ZTC18M008</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Zirconia/Silica beads</td>
			<td>BioSpec products</td>
			<td>11079110z</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Equipment</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Bead beater (Homogeniser)</td>
			<td>Bertin Minilys</td>
			<td>P000673-MLYS0-A</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Microplate reader (spectrophotometer)</td>
			<td>Thermo</td>
			<td>MultiSkan Go</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>pH meter</td>
			<td>Eutech</td>
			<td>CyberScan pH 510</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Probe Sonicator</td>
			<td>Sonics Materials, Inc</td>
			<td>VCX 130</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Shaking Drybath</td>
			<td>Thermo</td>
			<td>88880028</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>TSQ Altis mass spectrometer</td>
			<td>Thermo</td>
			<td>TSQ02-10002</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>uHPLC - Vanquish</td>
			<td>Thermo</td>
			<td>VQF01-20001</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Vacuum concentrator</td>
			<td>Thermo</td>
			<td>Savant ISS 110</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

quantitative proteomics workflow using multiple reaction monitoring based detection of proteins from human brain tissue

The proteomic analysis of the human brain tissue over the last decade has greatly enhanced our understanding of the brain. However, brain related disorders continue to be a major contributor of deaths around the world, necessitating the need for even greater understanding of their pathobiology. Traditional antibody-based techniques like western blotting or immunohistochemistry suffer from being low-throughput besides being labor-intensive and qualitative or semi-quantitative. Even conventional mass spectrometry-based shotgun approaches fail to provide conclusive evidence to support a certain hypothesis. Targeted proteomics approaches are largely hypothesis driven and differ from the conventional shotgun proteomics approaches that have been long in use. Multiple reaction monitoring is one such targeted approach that requires the use of a special mass spectrometer called the tandem quadrupole mass spectrometer or triple quadrupole mass spectrometer. In the current study, we have systematically highlighted the major steps involved in performing a successful tandem quadrupole mass spectrometry-based proteomics workflow using human brain tissue with an aim to introduce this workflow to a broader research community.

We performed relative quantification of 3 proteins from 10 samples, 5 samples from each group of patients with abnormalities in the brain. These proteins included Apolipoprotein A-I (APOA-I), Vimentin (VIM) and Nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase (NAMPT) which are known to perform diverse roles in the brain cells. Post-run analysis of the data was performed using Skyline-daily (Ver 20.2.1.286). A total of 10 peptides corresponding to 3 proteins were monitored. These included 3 peptides for APOA-I, 4 peptides for VIM a...

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Quantitative Proteomics Workflow using Multiple Reaction Monitoring Based Detection of Proteins from Human Brain Tissue

The protocol aims to introduce the use of a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer for Multiple Reaction Monitoring (MRM) of proteins from clinical samples. We have provided a systematic workflow starting from sample preparation to data analysis for clinical samples with all the necessary precautions to be taken.

The proteomic analysis of the human brain tissue over the last decade has greatly enhanced our understanding of the brain. However, brain related ...

quantitative-proteomics-workflow-using-multiple-reaction-monitoring

Universidad de Cartagena UDEC

Research

JoVE Journal

Biology

4.4K Views.  Indian Institute of Technology Bombay. The protocol aims to introduce the use of a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer for Multiple Reaction Monitoring (MRM) of proteins from clinical samples. We have provided a systematic workflow starting from sample preparation to data analysis for clinical samples with all the necessary precautions to be taken.

Video: Quantitative Proteomics Workflow using Multiple Reaction Monitoring Based Detection of Proteins from Human Brain Tissue

A Chromatin Assay for Human Brain Tissue

Chronic neuropsychiatric illnesses such as schizophrenia, bipolar disease and autism are thought to result from a combination of genetic and environmental factors that might result in epigenetic alterations of gene expression and other molecular pathology. Traditionally, however, expression studies in postmortem brain were confined to quantification of mRNA or protein. The limitations encountered in postmortem brain research   such as variabilities in autolysis time and tissue integrities   are also likely to impact any studies of higher order chromatin structures. However, the nucleosomal organization of genomic DNA   including DNA:core histone binding - appears to be largely preserved in representative samples provided by various brain banks. Therefore, it is possible to study the methylation pattern and other covalent modifications of the core histones at defined genomic loci in postmortem brain. Here, we present a simplified native chromatin immunoprecipitation (NChIP) protocol for frozen (never-fixed) human brain specimens. Starting with micrococcal nuclease digestion of brain homogenates, NChIP followed by qPCR can be completed within three days. The methodology presented here should be useful to elucidate epigenetic mechanisms of gene expression in normal and diseased human brain.

Until recently, expression studies on human brain were limited to quantification of RNA or protein. With the chromatin immunoprecipitation techniques described in this paper, it will be possible to map histone methylation and other epigenetic regulators of gene expression in postmortem brain.

Chronic neuropsychiatric illnesses such as schizophrenia, bipolar disease and autism are thought to result from a combination of genetic and environmental ...

Neuronal Nuclei Isolation from Human Postmortem Brain Tissue

Neurons in the human brain become postmitotic largely during prenatal development, and thus maintain their nuclei throughout the full lifespan. However, little is known about changes in neuronal chromatin and nuclear organization during the course of development and aging, or in chronic neuropsychiatric disease. However, to date most chromatin and DNA based assays (other than FISH) lack single cell resolution. To this end, the considerable cellular heterogeneity of brain tissue poses a significant limitation, because typically various subpopulations of neurons are intermingled with different types of glia and other non-neuronal cells. One possible solution would be to grow cell-type specific cultures, but most CNS cells, including neurons, are ex vivo sustainable, at best, for only a few weeks and thus would provide an incomplete model for epigenetic mechanisms potentially operating across the full lifespan.  Here, we provide a protocol to extract and purify nuclei from frozen (never fixed) human postmortem brain. The method involves extraction of nuclei in hypotonic lysis buffer, followed by ultracentrifugation and immunotagging with anti-NeuN antibody. Labeled neuronal nuclei are then collected separately using fluorescence-activated sorting. This method should be applicable to any brain region in a wide range of species and suitable for chromatin immunoprecipitation studies with site- and modification-specific anti-histone antibodies, and for DNA methylation and other assays. 

The cellular heterogeneity of brain tissue poses a significant limitation for the study of epigenetic markings in chromatin because most assays lack single cell resolution. Neurons typically are intermingled with glia and other non-neuronal cells. We provide a protocol to extract and collect neuronal nuclei from human brain.

Neurons in the human brain become postmitotic largely during prenatal development, and thus maintain their nuclei throughout the full lifespan. However, ...

Monitoring Acupuncture Effects on Human Brain by fMRI

Functional MRI is used to study the effects of acupuncture on the BOLD response and the functional connectivity of the human brain.  Results demonstrate that acupuncture mobilizes a limbic-paralimbic-neocortical network and its anti-correlated sensorimotor/paralimbic network at multiple levels of the brain and that the hemodynamic response is influenced by the psychophysical response.  Physiological monitoring may be performed to explore the peripheral response of the autonomic nerve function. This video describes the studies performed at LI4 (hegu), ST36 (zusanli) and LV3 (taichong), classical acupoints that are commonly used for modulatory and pain-reducing actions. Some issues that require attention in the applications of fMRI to acupuncture investigation are noted.

FMRI and physiological monitoring is used to study the effects of Acupuncture on the central and peripheral nervous systems. Acupuncture mobilizes a limbic-paralimbic-neocortical network, with great overlap with the default mode network, to modulate neurological activity, possibly related to its autonomic effect in the peripheral nervous system.

Functional MRI is used to study the effects of acupuncture on the BOLD response and the functional connectivity of the human brain.  Results demonstrate ...

Identification of protein complexes with quantitative proteomics in S. cerevisiae

Lipids are the building blocks of cellular membranes that function as barriers and in compartmentalization of cellular processes, and recently, as important intracellular signalling molecules. However, unlike proteins, lipids are small hydrophobic molecules that traffic primarily by poorly described nonvesicular routes, which are hypothesized to occur at membrane contact sites (MCSs). MCSs are regions where the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) makes direct physical contact with a partnering organelle, e.g., plasma membrane (PM). The ER portion of ER-PM MCSs is enriched in lipid-synthesizing enzymes, suggesting that lipid synthesis is directed to these sites and implying that MCSs are important for lipid traffic. Yeast is an ideal model to study ER-PM MCSs because of their abundance, with over 1000 contacts per cell, and their conserved nature in all eukaryotes. Uncovering the proteins that constitute MCSs is critical to understanding how lipids traffic is accomplished in cells, and how they act as signaling molecules. We have found that an ER called Scs2p localize to ER-PM MCSs and is important for their formation. We are focused on uncovering the molecular partners of Scs2p. Identification of protein complexes traditionally relies on first resolving purified protein samples by gel electrophoresis, followed by in-gel digestion of protein bands and analysis of peptides by mass spectrometry. This often limits the study to a small subset of proteins. Also, protein complexes are exposed to denaturing or non-physiological conditions during the procedure. To circumvent these problems, we have implemented a large-scale quantitative proteomics technique to extract unbiased and quantified data. We use stable isotope labeling with amino acids in cell culture (SILAC) to incorporate staple isotope nuclei in proteins in an untagged control strain. Equal volumes of tagged culture and untagged, SILAC-labeled culture are mixed together and lysed by grinding in liquid nitrogen. We then carry out an affinity purification procedure to pull down protein complexes. Finally, we precipitate the protein sample, which is ready for analysis by high-performance liquid chromatography/ tandem mass spectrometry. Most importantly, proteins in the control strain are labeled by the heavy isotope and will produce a mass/ charge shift that can be quantified against the unlabeled proteins in the bait strain. Therefore, contaminants, or unspecific binding can be easily eliminated. By using this approach, we have identified several novel proteins that localize to ER-PM MCSs. Here we present a detailed description of our approach. 

Here we describe a new quantitative proteomics technique for identifying protein complexes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. In this study, we have used the SILAC method together with affinity purification followed by tandem mass spectrometry to identify with high specificity the binding partners of an ER protein, Scs2p.

Lipids are the building blocks of cellular membranes that function as barriers and in compartmentalization of cellular processes, and recently, as ...

Obtaining High Quality RNA from Single Cell Populations in Human Postmortem Brain Tissue

We proposed to investigate the gray matter reduction in the superior temporal gyrus seen in schizophrenia patients, by interrogating gene expression profiles of pyramidal neurons in layer III. It is well known that the cerebral cortex is an exceptionally heterogeneous structure comprising diverse regions, layers and cell types, each of which is characterized by distinct cellular and molecular compositions and therefore differential gene expression profiles. To circumvent the confounding effects of tissue heterogeneity, we used laser-capture microdissection (LCM) in order to isolate our specific cell-type i.e pyramidal neurons.
Approximately 500 pyramidal neurons stained with the Histogene staining solution were captured using the Arcturus XT LCM system. RNA was then isolated from captured cells and underwent two rounds of T7-based linear amplification using Arcturus/Molecular Devices kits. The Experion LabChip (Bio-Rad) gel and electropherogram indicated good quality a(m)RNA, with a transcript length extending past 600nt required for microarrays. The amount of mRNA obtained averaged 51&mu;g, with acceptable mean sample purity as indicated by the A260/280 ratio, of 2.5. Gene expression was profiled using the Human X3P GeneChip probe array from Affymetrix.

We describe a process using laser-capture microdissection to isolate and extract RNA from a homogeneous cell population, pyramidal neurons, in layer III of the superior temporal gyrus in postmortem human brains. We subsequently linearly amplify (T7-based) mRNA, and hybridize the sample to the Affymetrix human X3P microarray.

We proposed to investigate the gray matter reduction in the superior temporal gyrus seen in schizophrenia patients, by interrogating gene expression ...

Quantification of Proteins Using Peptide Immunoaffinity Enrichment Coupled with Mass Spectrometry

There is a great need for quantitative assays in measuring proteins. Traditional sandwich immunoassays, largely considered the gold standard in quantitation, are associated with a high cost, long lead time, and are fraught with drawbacks (e.g. heterophilic antibodies, autoantibody interference, 'hook-effect').1 An alternative technique is affinity enrichment of peptides coupled with quantitative mass spectrometry, commonly referred to as SISCAPA (Stable Isotope Standards and Capture by Anti-Peptide Antibodies).2 In this technique, affinity enrichment of peptides with stable isotope dilution and detection by selected/multiple reaction monitoring mass spectrometry (SRM/MRM-MS) provides quantitative measurement of peptides as surrogates for their respective proteins. SRM/MRM-MS is well established for accurate quantitation of small molecules 3, 4 and more recently has been adapted to measure the concentrations of proteins in plasma and cell lysates.5-7 To achieve quantitation of proteins, these larger molecules are digested to component peptides using an enzyme such as trypsin. One or more selected peptides whose sequence is unique to the target protein in that species (i.e. "proteotypic" peptides) are then enriched from the sample using anti-peptide antibodies and measured as quantitative stoichiometric surrogates for protein concentration in the sample. Hence, coupled to stable isotope dilution (SID) methods (i.e. a spiked-in stable isotope labeled peptide standard), SRM/MRM can be used to measure concentrations of proteotypic peptides as surrogates for quantification of proteins in complex biological matrices. The assays have several advantages compared to traditional immunoassays. The reagents are relatively less expensive to generate, the specificity for the analyte is excellent, the assays can be highly multiplexed, enrichment can be performed from neat plasma (no depletion required), and the technique is amenable to a wide array of proteins or modifications of interest.8-13 In this video we demonstrate the basic protocol as adapted to a magnetic bead platform.

Stable Isotope Standards and Capture by Anti-Peptide Antibodies (SISCAPA) couples affinity enrichment of peptides with stable isotope dilution mass spectrometry (MRM-MS) to provide quantitative measurement of peptides as surrogates for their respective proteins. Here we describe the protocol using magnetic particles in a partially automated format.

There is a great need for quantitative assays in measuring proteins. Traditional sandwich immunoassays, largely considered the gold standard in ...

High-throughput Crystallization of Membrane Proteins Using the Lipidic Bicelle Method

Membrane proteins (MPs) play a critical role in many physiological processes such as pumping specific molecules across the otherwise impermeable membrane bilayer that surrounds all cells and organelles. Alterations in the function of MPs result in many human diseases and disorders; thus, an intricate understanding of their structures remains a critical objective for biological research. However, structure determination of MPs remains a significant challenge often stemming from their hydrophobicity. 
MPs have substantial hydrophobic regions embedded within the bilayer. Detergents are frequently used to solubilize these proteins from the bilayer generating a protein-detergent micelle that can then be manipulated in a similar manner as soluble proteins. Traditionally, crystallization trials proceed using a protein-detergent mixture, but they often resist crystallization or produce crystals of poor quality. These problems arise due to the detergent&prime;s inability to adequately mimic the bilayer resulting in poor stability and heterogeneity. In addition, the detergent shields the hydrophobic surface of the MP reducing the surface area available for crystal contacts. To circumvent these drawbacks MPs can be crystallized in lipidic media, which more closely simulates their endogenous environment, and has recently become a de novo technique for MP crystallization.
Lipidic cubic phase (LCP) is a three-dimensional lipid bilayer penetrated by an interconnected system of aqueous channels1. Although monoolein is the lipid of choice, related lipids such as monopalmitolein and monovaccenin have also been used to make LCP2. MPs are incorporated into the LCP where they diffuse in three dimensions and feed crystal nuclei. A great advantage of the LCP is that the protein remains in a more native environment, but the method has a number of technical disadvantages including high viscosity (requiring specialized apparatuses) and difficulties in crystal visualization and manipulation3,4. Because of these technical difficulties, we utilized another lipidic medium for crystallization-bicelles5,6 (Figure 1). Bicelles are lipid/amphiphile mixtures formed by blending a phosphatidylcholine lipid (DMPC) with an amphiphile (CHAPSO) or a short-chain lipid (DHPC). Within each bicelle disc, the lipid molecules generate a bilayer while the amphiphile molecules line the apolar edges providing beneficial properties of both bilayers and detergents. Importantly, below their transition temperature, protein-bicelle mixtures have a reduced viscosity and are manipulated in a similar manner as detergent-solubilized MPs, making bicelles compatible with crystallization robots. 
Bicelles have been successfully used to crystallize several membrane proteins5,7-11 (Table 1). This growing collection of proteins demonstrates the versatility of bicelles for crystallizing both alpha helical and beta sheet MPs from prokaryotic and eukaryotic sources. Because of these successes and the simplicity of high-throughput implementation, bicelles should be part of every membrane protein crystallographer&prime;s arsenal. In this video, we describe the bicelle methodology and provide a step-by-step protocol for setting up high-throughput crystallization trials of purified MPs using standard robotics.

Bicelles are lipid/amphiphile mixtures that maintain membrane proteins (MPs) within a lipid bilayer but have unique phase behavior that facilitates high-throughput screening by crystallization robots. This technique has successfully produced a number of high-resolution structures from both prokaryotic and eukaryotic sources. This video describes protocols for generating the lipidic bicelle mixture, incorporating MPs into the bicelle mixture, setting up crystallizations trials (manually as well as robotically) and harvesting crystals from the medium.

Membrane proteins (MPs) play a critical role in many physiological processes such as pumping specific molecules across the otherwise impermeable membrane ...

A Quantitative Fitness Analysis Workflow

Quantitative Fitness Analysis (QFA) is an experimental and computational workflow for comparing fitnesses of microbial cultures grown in parallel1,2,3,4. QFA can be applied to focused observations of single cultures but is most useful for genome-wide genetic interaction or drug screens investigating up to thousands of independent cultures. The central experimental method is the inoculation of independent, dilute liquid microbial cultures onto solid agar plates which are incubated and regularly photographed. Photographs from each time-point are analyzed, producing quantitative cell density estimates, which are used to construct growth curves, allowing quantitative fitness measures to be derived. Culture fitnesses can be compared to quantify and rank genetic interaction strengths or drug sensitivities. The effect on culture fitness of any treatments added into substrate agar (e.g. small molecules, antibiotics or nutrients) or applied to plates externally (e.g. UV irradiation, temperature) can be quantified by QFA.
The QFA workflow produces growth rate estimates analogous to those obtained by spectrophotometric measurement of parallel liquid cultures in 96-well or 200-well plate readers. Importantly, QFA has significantly higher throughput compared with such methods. QFA cultures grow on a solid agar surface and are therefore well aerated during growth without the need for stirring or shaking.
QFA throughput is not as high as that of some Synthetic Genetic Array (SGA) screening methods5,6. However, since QFA cultures are heavily diluted before being inoculated onto agar, QFA can capture more complete growth curves, including exponential and saturation phases3. For example, growth curve observations allow culture doubling times to be estimated directly with high precision, as discussed previously1.
Here we present a specific QFA protocol applied to thousands of S. cerevisiae cultures which are automatically handled by robots during inoculation, incubation and imaging. Any of these automated steps can be replaced by an equivalent, manual procedure, with an associated reduction in throughput, and we also present a lower throughput manual protocol. The same QFA software tools can be applied to images captured in either workflow.
We have extensive experience applying QFA to cultures of the budding yeast S. cerevisiae but we expect that QFA will prove equally useful for examining cultures of the fission yeast S. pombe and bacterial cultures.

Quantitative Fitness Analysis (QFA) is a complementary series of experimental and computational methods for estimating microbial culture fitnesses. QFA estimates the effect of genetic mutations, drugs or other applied treatments on microbe growth. Experiments scaling from focussed analysis of single cultures to thousands of parallel cultures can be designed.

Quantitative Fitness Analysis (QFA) is an experimental and computational workflow for comparing fitnesses of microbial cultures grown in parallel1,2,3,4. ...

Proteomic Sample Preparation from Formalin Fixed and Paraffin Embedded Tissue

Preserved clinical material is a unique source for proteomic investigation of human disorders. Here we describe an optimized protocol allowing large scale quantitative analysis of formalin fixed and paraffin embedded (FFPE) tissue. The procedure comprises four distinct steps. The first one is the preparation of sections from the FFPE material and microdissection of cells of interest. In the second step the isolated cells are lysed and processed using 'filter aided sample preparation' (FASP) technique. In this step, proteins are depleted from reagents used for the sample lysis and are digested in two-steps using endoproteinase LysC and trypsin. 
After each digestion, the peptides are collected in separate fractions and their content is determined using a highly sensitive fluorescence measurement. Finally, the peptides are fractionated on 'pipette-tip' microcolumns. The LysC-peptides are separated into 4 fractions whereas the tryptic peptides are separated into 2 fractions. In this way prepared samples allow analysis of proteomes from minute amounts of material to a depth of 10,000 proteins. Thus, the described workflow is a powerful technique for studying diseases in a system-wide-fashion as well as for identification of potential biomarkers and drug targets.

Archival formalin fixed and paraffin embedded (FFPE) clinical samples are valuable material for investigation of diseases. Here we demonstrate a sample preparation workflow allowing in-depth proteomic analysis of microdissected FFPE tissue.

Preserved clinical material is a unique source for proteomic investigation of human disorders. Here we describe an optimized protocol allowing large scale ...

Identification of Protein Interaction Partners in Mammalian Cells Using SILAC-immunoprecipitation Quantitative Proteomics

Quantitative proteomics combined with immuno-affinity purification, SILAC immunoprecipitation, represent a powerful means for the discovery of novel protein:protein interactions. By allowing the accurate relative quantification of protein abundance in both control and test samples, true interactions may be easily distinguished from experimental contaminants. Low affinity interactions can be preserved through the use of less-stringent buffer conditions and remain readily identifiable. This protocol discusses the labeling of tissue culture cells with stable isotope labeled amino acids, transfection and immunoprecipitation of an affinity tagged protein of interest, followed by the preparation for submission to a mass spectrometry facility. This protocol then discusses how to analyze and interpret the data returned from the mass spectrometer in order to identify cellular partners interacting with a protein of interest. As an example this technique is applied to identify proteins binding to the eukaryotic translation initiation factors: eIF4AI and eIF4AII.

SILAC immunoprecipitation experiments represent a powerful means for discovering novel protein:protein interactions. By allowing the accurate relative quantification of protein abundance in both control and test samples, true interactions may be easily distinguished from experimental contaminants, and low affinity interactions preserved through use of less-stringent buffer conditions.

Quantitative proteomics combined with immuno-affinity purification, SILAC immunoprecipitation, represent a powerful means for the discovery of novel ...