Profiling Signaling Peptides in Single Mammalian Cells Using Mass Spectrometry

摘要

The peptide content of individual mammalian cells is profiled using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Both enzymatic and non-enzymatic procedures, including a glycerol cell stabilization method, are reported for the isolation of individual mammalian cells in a manner compatible with MALDI MS measurements. Guided microdeposition of MALDI matrix allows samples to be created with suitable analyte-to-matrix ratios. More than fifteen peptides are observed in individual rat intermediate pituitary cells. The combination of accurate mass data, expected cleavages by proteolytic enzymes, and post-source decay sequencing allows identification of fourteen of these peptides as pro-opiomelanocortin prohormone-derived molecules. These protocols permit the classification of individual mammalian cells by peptide profile, the elucidation of cell-specific prohormone processing, and the discovery of new signaling peptides on a cell-to-cell basis in a wide variety of mammalian cell types.