1Medical Research Council Protein Phosphorylation and Ubiquitylation Unit, School of Life Sciences, University of Dundee, Dow Street, Dundee DD1 5EH, UK
Protocol Citation: Ilham Seffouh, Tran Le Cong Huyen Bao Phan, Toan K. Phung, Dario R Alessi, Raja S. Nirujogi 2023. Sample preparation for TMT-based total and phospho-proteomic analysis of cells and tissues. protocols.io https://dx.doi.org/10.17504/protocols.io.261ged49yv47/v1
License: This is an open access protocol distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited
Protocol status: Working
We use this protocol and it's working
Created: July 14, 2023
Last Modified: May 31, 2024
Protocol Integer ID: 85006
Keywords: Lysate preparation, Sample preparation for S-Trap assisted digestion, Sep-Pak purification, Phosphopeptide enrichment using TiO2, Tandem Mass Tags, Phosphoproteomic analysis, ASAPCRN
Funders Acknowledgement:
Aligning Science Across Parkinson's
Grant ID: ASAP-000463
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Abstract
Mass spectrometry-based proteomics and phosphoproteomics are highly sensitive and un-biased techniques to study the proteome and phosphoproteome at a global scale. Sample preparation is a key element for the generation of high quality, reproducible data. Here we provide a step-by-step protocol for processing material derived from cells or tissue samples. We recommend employing S-Trap assisted tryptic digestion followed by a TiO2-based phosphopeptide enrichment to achieve the highest possible reproducibility across experimental replicates. We also provide 10 or 16 plex Tandem Mass Tags (TMT) multiplexing strategy in combination with High-pH reversed-phase fractionation to achieve high coverage for phosphoproteomic analysis. The nano-liquid chromatography and High-resolution mass spectrometry instrument settings for both MS2 and Synchronous precursor selection MS3 data acquisition on Orbitrap Lumos Tribrid mass spectrometer are also described. Using these protocols, we routinely identify and quantify >35,000 phosphosites and ~10,000 protein groups.
S-Trap protein binding buffer (90% (by vol) aqueous LC grade methanol containing a final concentration of 100 mM TEABC made from a 1 M TEABC stock purchased from Sigma Aldrich # T7408-500 ML)
Sequencing grade trypsin (5 X 20 μg pack. Promega #V5111).c
TPCK treated Trypsin from bovine pancreas (Sigma Aldrich # T1426-100MG)
Prepare cells at a suitable confluency ~70 to 80% in a 15 cm dish. Ensure to have sufficient replicates, preferably 4 replicates per condition.
Wash cells with 5 mL plain DMEM medium and wash with 5 mL PBS.
Add 700 µL of SDS lysis buffer to the dish and scrape it using a suitable scrapper, transfer the lysate into 1.5 ml low bind Eppendorf tube.
Boil samples at 95 °C for 00:05:00, cool them On ice and subject samples to sonication using Bioruptor, 30 sec/ON and 30 sec/OFF per cycle for a total of 15 cycles.
5m
Centrifuge samples at 20000 x g, 00:20:00 and transfer the supernatant to a new 1.5 ml low bind Eppendorf tubes.
20m
Take an aliquot for protein estimation using BCA assay kit.
Transfer lysates to -80 °C freezer until further analysis.
Lysate preparation: For tissue samples
Lysate preparation: For tissue samples
2m
2m
Measure the wet weight of the tissue sample and always maintains samples on dry ice.
Transfer tissue samples to 2 mL Precellys Cryoyls-vials and add 1 mL of SDS lysis buffer.
Place vials in Precellys homogenizer and use a program with 3 cycles (2000 rpm for 30 sec ON and 20 sec Pause per cycle).
Centrifuge samples at 2000 x g, 00:02:00.
2m
Transfer samples to new 1.5 ml low bind Eppendorf tubes and follow the steps described from step 4 to step 7.
Sample preparation for S-Trap assisted digestion
Sample preparation for S-Trap assisted digestion
18h 59m
18h 59m
Take 3 mg of protein for total and Phosphoproteomic analysis in a 2 ml low bind Eppendorf tubes.
Perform reduction by adding a 1 in 10 dilution of a solution of 0.1 Molarity (M) TCEP dissolved in 300 millimolar (mM) TEABC to bring final concentration of TCEP to 10 millimolar (mM).
Incubate on a Thermomixer for 00:30:00 at 60 °C temperature with a gentle agitation.
30m
Bring tubes to Room temperature and add a 1 in 10 dilution of freshly prepared 0.4 Molarity (M) iodoacetamide dissolved in water.
Incubate in dark on a Thermomixer at Room temperature for about 00:30:00 with a gentle agitation.
30m
Quench alkylation by addition of a 1 in 10 dilution of 0.1 Molarity (M) TCEP dissolved in 300 millimolar (mM) TEABC to bring final concentration of TCEP to 10 millimolar (mM).
Incubate on a Thermomixer for 00:20:00 at Room temperature with a gentle agitation.
20m
Add SDS to a final concentration of 5% (by mass) from 20% (by mass) SDS stock.
Transfer lysates into a 15 ml falcon tube.
Add a final 1% (by vol) from a 20% (by vol) stock solution of Trifluoroacetic acid.
Dilute the samples to in 7 times the current volume of the mixture in of S-Trap wash buffer (90% (by vol) methanol in 0.1 Molarity (M) TEABC 7.1 v/v) (for examples if sample volume is 50 µL, add 300 µL of S-Trap wash buffer (90% (by vol) methanol in 0.1 Molarity (M) TEABC 7.1 (v/v)). Perform gentle vortex and transfer samples by pipetting up/down for few times to avoid any clumps.
Prepare an S-Trap midi column in a 15 ml falcon tube.
Add the diluted protein mixture to the column.
Centrifuge briefly to capture the protein particles at 2000 x g, Room temperature, 00:04:00.
4m
Wash column with 3.5 mL of S-Trap buffer a total of 4 times (spin 2000 x g, 00:04:00 between washes).
4m
Move the S-Trap column to a clean 15 ml tube for digestion.
Add a 400 µL solution of freshly dissolved trypsin+Lys-C containing 30 µg for each sample freshly dissolved in 100 millimolar (mM) TEABC*. Simultaneously add 400 µL of TPCK treated trypsin in 100 millimolar (mM) TEABC containing 300 µg for each sample.
Centrifuge briefly at 200 x g, 00:01:00.
1m
Collect flowthrough and reapply the trypsin solution back onto the column, being careful to avoid air bubbles.
Cap the tubes and incubate at 47 °C without shaking for 01:30:00 on a Thermomixer with a 15 ml heating block.
1h 30m
Incubate samples on Thermomixer for 16:00:00 at Room temperature.
16h
Add 500 µL of 50 millimolar (mM) TEABC then spin to elute and place the eluate in a new 15ml falcon tube termed “eluate tube”.
Next, add 500 µL of 0.15% (by vol) Formic Acid and spin to elute. Also add this eluate to the “eluate tube”.
Finally, add 500 µL of 80% (by vol) Acetonitrile in 0.15% (by vol) formic acid and spin to elute. Also add this eluate to the “eluate tube”. Repeat this step two more times.
Take 1-2 µL of the combined eluate, vacuum dry and inject on MS to verify the digestion efficiency.
Vacuum dry the remaining peptide amount and store in -80 °C deep freezer until the Sep-Pak purification.
Sep-Pak purification
Sep-Pak purification
44m
44m
Dissolve vacuum dried peptides by adding 1 mL of 1% TFA (by vol) aqueous and place the tubes on a Thermomixer at Room temperature for 00:30:00 shaking at 1800 rpm.
30m
Centrifuge tubes at high speed 17000 x g, Room temperature, 00:10:00 and place tubes aside for peptide purification using Sep-Pak cartridges.
10m
Place Sep-Pak Vac 1 cc (50 mg) tC18 cartridges each in 15 ml falcon tubes.
Add 1 mL of Activation buffer (100% ACN by vol).
Centrifuge at 50 x g, Room temperature, 00:01:00.
1m
Repeat step 42 for a total of 4 column washes and discard the flowthrough.
Add 1 mL of equilibration buffer (0.1% TFA (by vol) aqueous).
Centrifuge at 50 x g, Room temperature, 00:01:00.
1m
Repeat step 45 for a total of 4 column washes and discard the flowthrough.
Load acidified peptide digest slowly onto the column.
Reapply the collected flowthrough onto the column and save the flowthrough.
Add 1 mL of wash buffer (0.1% formic acid (by vol) aqueous).
Centrifuge at 50 x g, Room temperature, 00:01:00.
1m
Repeat step 50 for a total of 4 column washes and discard the flowthrough.
Place columns onto 1.5 ml low bind Eppendorf tubes for elution.
Add 350 µL of elution buffer (0.1% formic acid (by vol) in 50% ACN (by vol) aqueous). Let the buffer elute peptides by gravity.
Repeat step 54 for two more times. After final elution discard columns, vortex tubes and centrifuge at 17000 x g, Room temperature, 00:01:00.
1m
Take 5% by vol for total proteomic analysis.
A small aliquot ~0.1% can be taken for the verification of tryptic digestion. Submit these samples for mass spectrometry (MS) analysis.
Snap freeze samples on dry-ice and vacuum dry using Speed Vac concentrator and store samples in -80 °C freezer until Phosphopeptide enrichment.
Phosphopeptide enrichment using TiO2
Phosphopeptide enrichment using TiO2
56m 30s
56m 30s
Label four sets of 2 ml low bind Eppendorf tubes.
Dissolve Sep-Pak purified peptide digest by adding 200 µL of binding buffer (provided with the kit). Place samples on a Thermomixer for 00:30:00 at Room temperature at 1800 rpm agitation.
30m
Centrifuge samples at 17000 x g, Room temperature, 00:05:00 and transfer supernatant to new 1.5 ml low bind Eppendorf tubes.
5m
Take High-select Phosphopeptide enrichment kit (Thermo Fisher Scientific).
Label the TiO2 spin tips with a marker.
Add 20 µL of Wash Buffer and centrifuge at 3000 x g, 00:02:00.
2m
Add 20 µL of Binding/Equilibration Buffer and centrifuge at 3000 x g, 00:02:00.
2m
Discard the flowthrough. Save the microcentrifuge tube for later "Wash column" step 1.
Transfer the equilibrated TiO2 spin tips along with the centrifuge column adaptor into a new 2 ml low bind Eppendorf tubes.
Apply 200 µL of suspended peptide sample to the spin tip. Centrifuge at 1000 x g, 00:05:00.
5m
Reapply sample in the microcentrifuge tube to the spin tip. Centrifuge at 1000 x g, 00:05:00.
5m
Transfer the TiO2 spin tips along with the centrifuge column adaptor into a new 2 ml low bind Eppendorf tubes.
Wash column by adding 20 µL of Binding/Equilibration Buffer. Centrifuge at 3000 x g, 00:02:00.
2m
Wash column by adding 20 µL of Wash Buffer. Centrifuge at 3000 x g, 00:02:00.
2m
Repeat steps 71 and 72 in a sequential order.
Wash column by adding 20 µL of LC-MS grade water. Centrifuge at 3000 x g, 00:02:00.
2m
Place TiO2 spin tips into new 2 ml low bind Eppendorf tubes. Add 60 µL of elution buffer and centrifuge at 1000 x g, 00:01:00.
1m
Repeat step 75 for a second round of elution. Discard spin tips, vortex samples and centrifuge at 17000 x g, 00:00:30.
30s
Take 1% of the sample for Phosphopeptide enrichment verification by MS analysis.
Take 25 % of the sample as a back-up or for Data Independent Acquisition (DIA)-based MS analysis.
Snap freeze samples on dry ice and subject them for vacuum dryness using Speed Vac concentrator.
The Phosphopeptides needs to be purified prior to the Tandem mass tags (TMT) labelling using Sep-Pak purification protocol described in section Sep-Pak purification. Follow all steps except use 200 µL of elution buffer and repeat elution two more times for a total of 600 µL of eluates.
Snap freeze samples on dry ice and subject them for vacuum dryness using Speed Vac concentrator. Store samples in -80 °C freezer until the TMT labelling.
Tandem Mass Tags (TMT) labelling of peptides
Tandem Mass Tags (TMT) labelling of peptides
3h 28m
3h 28m
Dissolve Sep-Pak purified total proteome and Phosphoproteomic samples by adding 30 µL of 50 millimolar (mM) TEABC buffer. Place samples on a Thermomixer at Room temperature with an agitation at 1800 rpm for 00:20:00.
20m
Take out TMT kit from -80 °C freezer and equilibrate it to reach Room temperature.
Dissolve 800 µg of each of the TMT mass tag reagents within the 10 or 16-plex TMT reagent kit with 80 µL of 100% by vol anhydrous acetonitrile to obtain 10 μg/μL concentration for each TMT reporter tag.
Transfer dissolved peptides into a 0.5 ml low bind Eppendorf tubes.
Add 20 µL of 10 μg/μL TMT reagent i.e., 200 µg.
Give a gentle vortex and brief spin 2000 x g, 00:01:00.
1m
Place samples on a Thermomixer and incubate at Room temperature for 02:00:00 with a gentle agitation 800 rpm.
2h
Add another 50 µL of 50 millimolar (mM) TEABC buffer to make a final 100 µL reaction. Vortex, brief spin at 2000 x g, 00:01:00 and incubate on a Thermomixer for 00:10:00.
11m
In order to verify the TMT labelling efficiency of each TMT mass tag, take a 5 µL aliquot from each of the TMT samples and pool this in a single tube and vacuum dry immediately using a Speed Vac.
Place remaining 95 µL of the reaction in -80 °C freezer. If the labelling efficiency is >98% and levels of each labelled peptide appear to be close to 1:1, then proceed with the below steps.
Thaw stored TMT labelled samples from step 91 to Room temperature.
Prepare 5% (by vol) final Hydroxyl amine solution by dissolving in water from a 50% (by vol) stock solution.
Add 5 µL of 5% (by vol) Hydroxylamine to each sample to quench TMT reaction by incubating the reaction at Room temperature on a Thermomixer for 00:20:00.
20m
Pool all samples into a single tube.
Take 20% of the reaction i.e. 220 µL (For 16 plex-TMT experiment take 320 µL) as a backup, snap freeze on dry ice and vacuum dry.
Snap freeze the remaining 880 µL reaction and vacuum dry using Speed Vac.
Submit samples to MS facility for high pH fractionation.
Dissolve the digested peptide by adding 120 µL of High-pH Solvent-A (10 millimolar (mM) Ammonium formate 10.0). Place the sample on a Thermomixer with an agitation at 1800 rpm for 00:30:00. Centrifuge at 17000 x g, 00:05:00.
35m
Verify the pH to be ~ 10.0. If pH appears to be low, adjust with Ammonium hydroxide (38% (by vol) by adding 1 µL and recheck the pH.
Ensure the LC-solvents are as Solvent-A (10 millimolar (mM) Ammonium formate 10.0); Solvent-B (90% ACN (v/v) in 10 millimolar (mM) Ammonium formate 10.0).
Prepare the LC method by following the below gradient:
A
B
C
Time
(min)
Nano pump Flow rate (µl/min)
% of Solvent-B
0.0
0.275
3.0
5.0
0.275
3.0
20.0
0.100
3.0
10.0
0.100
10.0
50.0
0.100
40.0
55.0
0.100
90.0
62.0
0.100
90.0
62.5
0.100
3.0
70.0
0.100
3.0
70.1
0.0100
3.0
Set the fraction collection time as Start time (min) 5.5 and End time (min) 62.0.
Collect a total of 96 fractions by keeping the fraction collection for 00:01:00 for each fraction.
1m
Concatenate by pooling distant fractions e.g. A1+D1, A2+D2, B1+E1, B2+E2 and so on to a total of 48 fractions in a 1.5 ml low bind Eppendorf tubes for LC-MS/MS analysis.
Snap freeze and vacuum dry using Speed Vac concentrator.
Prepare 2 µg of each fraction in 15 µL in LC buffer (0.1% (by vol) formic acid in 3% (by vol) Acetonitrile) and submit each fraction to the mass spectrometry facility.
Analyse each fraction by acquiring data in FT-FT-FT (MS3) HCD mode on a Orbitrap Fusion Lumos Mass spectrometer for 85 min run for each fraction.
LC-MS/MS analysis on Orbitrap Lumos Tribrid mass spectrometer for Phosphoproteomic analysis
LC-MS/MS analysis on Orbitrap Lumos Tribrid mass spectrometer for Phosphoproteomic analysis
Take 2 µg of each fraction from Phosphoproteomic experiment, transfer into LC vial and place it in LC autosampler tray.
Construct LC and MS method using the below settings.
LC Method: Dionex RSLC 3000 Ultimate LC system, 2 cm trap column and 50 cm analytical column connected and interfaced with Easy nano-source (Thermo Fisher Scientific).
A
B
C
D
No
Time (min)
Nano pump Flow rate (μl/min)
% Solvent-B
1
0
0.3
3
2
5
0.3
8
3
75
0.3
25
4
85
0.3
35
5
85.5
0.3
95
6
93
0.3
95
7
93.5
0.3
3
8
100
0.3
3
9
100
Stop
Mass spectrometer parameters: Refer below settings to construct FT-FT-HCD (MS2) method:
A
B
Method Summary
Method Settings
Application Mode
Peptide
Method Duration (min)
100
Global Parameters
Ion Source
Use Ion Source Settings from Tune
True
FAIMS Mode
Not Installed
MS Global Settings
Infusion Mode
Liquid Chromatography
Expected LC Peak Width (s)
30
Advanced Peak Determination
True
Default Charge State
2
Internal Mass Calibration
Off
Experiment#1 [MS]
Start Time (min)
0
End Time (min)
100
Master Scan
MS OT
Detector Type
Orbitrap
Orbitrap Resolution
120000
Mass Range
Normal
Use Quadrupole Isolation
True
Scan Range (m/z)
375-1400
RF Lens (%)
32
AGC Target
Standard
Maximum Injection Time Mode
Custom
Maximum Injection Time (ms)
50
Micro scans
1
Data Type
Profile
Polarity
Positive
Source Fragmentation
Disabled
Scan Description
Filters
MIPS
Monoisotopic Peak Determination
Peptide
Charge State
Include charge state(s)
2-7
Include undetermined charge states
False
Dynamic Exclusion
Use Common Settings
False
Exclude after n times
1
Exclusion duration (s)
45
Mass Tolerance
ppm
Low
10
High
10
Exclude Isotopes
True
Perform dependent scan on single charge state per precursor only
True
Intensity
Filter Type
Intensity Threshold
Intensity Threshold
5.00E+04
Precursor Fit
Fit Threshold (%)
70
Fit Window (m/z)
0.7
Data Dependent
Data Dependent Mode
Number of Scans
Number of Dependent Scans
15
Scan Event Type 1
Scan
ddMS² OT HCD
Isolation Mode
Quadrupole
Isolation Window (m/z)
0.7
Isolation Offset
Off
Activation Type
HCD
Collision Energy Mode
Fixed
HCD Collision Energy (%)
30
Detector Type
Orbitrap
Orbitrap Resolution
50000
Mass Range
Normal
Scan Range Mode
Define First Mass
First Mass (m/z)
110
AGC Target
Custom
Normalized AGC Target (%)
200
Maximum Injection Time Mode
Custom
Maximum Injection Time (ms)
120
Micro scans
1
Data Type
Profile
Use EASY-IC™
False
Scan Description
Export the MS raw data for database searches using MaxQuant or MS-Fragger. Analyse database search results using Perseus software package or R or MS-Stats or Python for statistical analysis.
LC-MS/MS analysis on Orbitrap Lumos Tribrid mass spectrometer for total proteomic analysis
LC-MS/MS analysis on Orbitrap Lumos Tribrid mass spectrometer for total proteomic analysis
Take 2 µg of each fraction from Phosphoproteomics experiment, transfer into LC vial and place it in LC autosampler tray.
Construct LC and MS method using the below settings.
LC Method: Dionex RSLC 3000 Ultimate LC system, 2 cm trap column and 50 cm analytical column connected and interfaced with Easy nano-source (Thermo Fisher Scientific).
A
B
C
D
No
Time (min)
Nano pump Flow rate (μl/min)
% Solvent-B
1
0
0.3
3
2
5
0.3
8
3
7
0.3
25
4
85
0.3
35
5
86
0.3
95
6
92
0.3
95
7
93
0.3
3
8
100
0.3
3
9
100
Stop
Mass spectrometer parameters: Refer below settings to construct FT-IT-HCD-FT-HCD (MS3) method:
A
B
Method Summary
Method Settings
Application Mode
Peptide
Method Duration (min)
100
Global Parameters
Ion Source
Use Ion Source Settings from Tune
True
FAIMS Mode
Not Installed
MS Global Settings
Infusion Mode
Liquid Chromatography
Expected LC Peak Width (s)
30
Advanced Peak Determination
True
Default Charge State
2
Internal Mass Calibration
Off
Experiment#1 [MS]
Start Time (min)
0
End Time (min)
100
Cycle Time (sec)
2
Master Scan
MS OT
Detector Type
Orbitrap
Orbitrap Resolution
120000
Mass Range
Normal
Use Quadrupole Isolation
True
Scan Range (m/z)
350-1500
RF Lens (%)
30
AGC Target
Standard
Maximum Injection Time Mode
Custom
Maximum Injection Time (ms)
50
Micro scans
1
Data Type
Profile
Polarity
Positive
Source Fragmentation
Disabled
Scan Description
Filters
MIPS
Monoisotopic Peak Determination
Peptide
Charge State
Include charge state(s)
2-7
Include undetermined charge states
False
Dynamic Exclusion
Use Common Settings
False
Exclude after n times
1
Exclusion duration (s)
45
Mass Tolerance
ppm
Low
10
High
10
Exclude Isotopes
True
Perform dependent scan on single
charge state per precursor only
True
Intensity
Filter Type
Intensity Threshold
Intensity Threshold
5.00E+03
Precursor Fit
Fit Threshold (%)
70
Fit Window (m/z)
0.7
Data Dependent
Data Dependent Mode
Cycle Time
Time between Master Scans (sec)
2
Scan Event Type 1
Scan
ddMS² IT HCD
Isolation Mode
Quadrupole
Isolation Window (m/z)
0.7
Isolation Offset
Off
Activation Type
HCD
Collision Energy Mode
Fixed
HCD Collision Energy (%)
32
Detector Type
Ion Trap
Ion Trap Scan Rate
Rapid
Mass Range
Normal
Scan Range Mode
Define m/z range
Scan Range (m/z)
200-1400
AGC Target
Custom
Normalized AGC Target (%)
200
Maximum Injection Time Mode
Custom
Maximum Injection Time (ms)
50
Micro scans
1
Data Type
Centroid
Scan Description
Filters
Precursor Selection Range
Selection Range Mode
Mass Range
Mass Range (m/z)
400-1400
Precursor Ion Exclusion
Exclusion mass width
ppm
Low
25
High
25
Isobaric Tag Loss Exclusion
Reagent
TMTpro
Data Dependent
Data Dependent Mode
Scans Per Outcome
Scan Event Type 1
Scan
ddMS³ OT HCD
MSⁿ Level
3
Synchronous Precursor Selection
True
Number of SPS Precursors
10
MS Isolation Window (m/z)
0.7
MS2 Isolation Window (m/z)
2
Isolation Offset
Off
Activation Type
HCD
HCD Collision Energy (%)
55
Detector Type
Orbitrap
Orbitrap Resolution
50000
Mass Range
Normal
Scan Range Mode
Define m/z range
Scan Range (m/z)
110-500
AGC Target
Standard
Maximum Injection Time Mode
Custom
Maximum Injection Time (ms)
120
Micro scans
1
Data Type
Profile
Use EASY-IC™
False
Scan Description
Number of Dependent Scans
10
Export the MS raw data for database searches using MaxQuant or MS-Fragger. Analyse database search results using Perseus software package or R or MS-Stats or Python for statistical analysis.