Samantha Bokatzian | National Jewish Health (original) (raw)

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Papers by Samantha Bokatzian

Research paper thumbnail of Redox modulation of NQO1

PloS one, 2018

NQO1 is a FAD containing NAD(P)H-dependent oxidoreductase that catalyzes the reduction of quinone... more NQO1 is a FAD containing NAD(P)H-dependent oxidoreductase that catalyzes the reduction of quinones and related substrates. In cells, NQO1 participates in a number of binding interactions with other proteins and mRNA and these interactions may be influenced by the concentrations of reduced pyridine nucleotides. NAD(P)H can protect NQO1 from proteolytic digestion suggesting that binding of reduced pyridine nucleotides results in a change in NQO1 structure. We have used purified NQO1 to demonstrate the addition of NAD(P)H induces a change in the structure of NQO1; this results in the loss of immunoreactivity to antibodies that bind to the C-terminal domain and to helix 7 of the catalytic core domain. Under normal cellular conditions NQO1 is not immunoprecipitated by these antibodies, however, following treatment with β-lapachone which caused rapid oxidation of NAD(P)H NQO1 could be readily pulled-down. Similarly, immunostaining for NQO1 was significantly increased in cells following tr...

Research paper thumbnail of Gas-Phase Deprotonation of the Peptide Backbone for Tripeptides and Their Methyl Esters with Hydrogen and Methyl Side Chains

The gas-phase acidities (GAs) of six tripeptides (GlyGlyGly, GlyAlaGly, AlaGlyAla, AlaAlaAla, Aib... more The gas-phase acidities (GAs) of six tripeptides (GlyGlyGly, GlyAlaGly, AlaGlyAla, AlaAlaAla, AibAibAib, and SarSarSar) and their methyl esters were obtained by proton transfer reactions in a Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometer and G3(MP2) molecular orbital theory calculations. All six peptides have GAs in the range 321.0−323.7 kcal/ mol. Their deprotonation to produce [M − H] − occurs at the C-terminal carboxylic acid group. The tripeptides are about 10 kcal/mol more acidic than the amino acids glycine (Gly) and alanine (Ala). This is consistent with the extensive hydrogen bonding that was found in the tripeptide structures. For the methyl esters, deprotonation occurs at the peptide backbone. G3(MP2) calculations show that the most energetically favored site of deprotonation is an amide nitrogen, with the central amide being generally preferred. Nitrogen deprotonation requires 10−20 kcal/mol less energy than deprotonation at a methylene carbon. Only three of the methyl esters (GlyGlyGly-OMe, GlyAlaGly-OMe, and AlaAlaAla-OMe) deprotonate experimentally by electrospray ionization. Experimental GAs for these esters are in the range of 336.7−338.1 kcal/mol, in excellent agreement with the calculated G3(MP2) values. Experimental GAs could not be obtained for the other three methyl esters (AlaGlyAla-OMe, AibAibAib-OMe, and SarSarSar-OMe) because they did not produce sufficient deprotonated molecular ions. Trisarcosine methyl ester, SarSarSar-OMe, cannot be deprotonated at a central amide nitrogen because methyl groups are present at these sites; consequently, it has a high G3(MP2) GA value (less acidic) of 350.6 kcal/mol for deprotonation at the N-terminal nitrogen. For AlaGlyAla-OMe and AibAibAib-OMe, calculations of van der Waals and solvent accessible surfaces reveal that methyl groups are blocking the amide nitrogen sites. Therefore, conformational and steric hindrance effects are limiting the ability of these peptide methyl esters to deprotonate in the mass spectrometer.

Research paper thumbnail of A Comparison of the Effects of Amide and Acid Groups at the C-Terminus on the Collision-Induced Dissociation of Deprotonated Peptides

The dissociative behavior of peptide amides and free acids was explored using low-energy collisio... more The dissociative behavior of peptide amides and free acids was explored using low-energy collision-induced dissociation and high level computational theory. Both positive and negative ion modes were utilized, but the most profound differences were observed for the deprotonated species. Deprotonated peptide amides produce a characteristic c m-2 product ion (where m is the number of residues in the peptide) that is either absent or in low abundance in the analogous peptide acid spectrum. Peptide acids show an enhanced formation of c m-3 -; however, this is not generally as pronounced as c m-2 production from amides. The most notable occurrence of an amide-specific product ion is for laminin amide (YIGSR-NH 2 ) and this case was investigated using several modified peptides. Mechanisms involving 6-and 9-membered ring formation were proposed, and their energetic properties were investigated using G3(MP2) molecular orbital theory calculations. For example, with C-terminal deprotonation of pentaglycine amide, formation of c m-2 and a 6-membered ring diketopiperazine neutral requires 931.6 kcal/mol, which is 26.1 kcal/mol less than the analogous process involving the peptide acid. The end group specific fragmentation of peptide amides in the negative ion mode may be useful for identifying such groups in proteomic applications.

Research paper thumbnail of Facile C-H bond activation for deuterium and tritium labeling of glycoconjugates conducted in ultrasonic and microwave fields: A review

Research paper thumbnail of Redox modulation of NQO1

PloS one, 2018

NQO1 is a FAD containing NAD(P)H-dependent oxidoreductase that catalyzes the reduction of quinone... more NQO1 is a FAD containing NAD(P)H-dependent oxidoreductase that catalyzes the reduction of quinones and related substrates. In cells, NQO1 participates in a number of binding interactions with other proteins and mRNA and these interactions may be influenced by the concentrations of reduced pyridine nucleotides. NAD(P)H can protect NQO1 from proteolytic digestion suggesting that binding of reduced pyridine nucleotides results in a change in NQO1 structure. We have used purified NQO1 to demonstrate the addition of NAD(P)H induces a change in the structure of NQO1; this results in the loss of immunoreactivity to antibodies that bind to the C-terminal domain and to helix 7 of the catalytic core domain. Under normal cellular conditions NQO1 is not immunoprecipitated by these antibodies, however, following treatment with β-lapachone which caused rapid oxidation of NAD(P)H NQO1 could be readily pulled-down. Similarly, immunostaining for NQO1 was significantly increased in cells following tr...

Research paper thumbnail of Gas-Phase Deprotonation of the Peptide Backbone for Tripeptides and Their Methyl Esters with Hydrogen and Methyl Side Chains

The gas-phase acidities (GAs) of six tripeptides (GlyGlyGly, GlyAlaGly, AlaGlyAla, AlaAlaAla, Aib... more The gas-phase acidities (GAs) of six tripeptides (GlyGlyGly, GlyAlaGly, AlaGlyAla, AlaAlaAla, AibAibAib, and SarSarSar) and their methyl esters were obtained by proton transfer reactions in a Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometer and G3(MP2) molecular orbital theory calculations. All six peptides have GAs in the range 321.0−323.7 kcal/ mol. Their deprotonation to produce [M − H] − occurs at the C-terminal carboxylic acid group. The tripeptides are about 10 kcal/mol more acidic than the amino acids glycine (Gly) and alanine (Ala). This is consistent with the extensive hydrogen bonding that was found in the tripeptide structures. For the methyl esters, deprotonation occurs at the peptide backbone. G3(MP2) calculations show that the most energetically favored site of deprotonation is an amide nitrogen, with the central amide being generally preferred. Nitrogen deprotonation requires 10−20 kcal/mol less energy than deprotonation at a methylene carbon. Only three of the methyl esters (GlyGlyGly-OMe, GlyAlaGly-OMe, and AlaAlaAla-OMe) deprotonate experimentally by electrospray ionization. Experimental GAs for these esters are in the range of 336.7−338.1 kcal/mol, in excellent agreement with the calculated G3(MP2) values. Experimental GAs could not be obtained for the other three methyl esters (AlaGlyAla-OMe, AibAibAib-OMe, and SarSarSar-OMe) because they did not produce sufficient deprotonated molecular ions. Trisarcosine methyl ester, SarSarSar-OMe, cannot be deprotonated at a central amide nitrogen because methyl groups are present at these sites; consequently, it has a high G3(MP2) GA value (less acidic) of 350.6 kcal/mol for deprotonation at the N-terminal nitrogen. For AlaGlyAla-OMe and AibAibAib-OMe, calculations of van der Waals and solvent accessible surfaces reveal that methyl groups are blocking the amide nitrogen sites. Therefore, conformational and steric hindrance effects are limiting the ability of these peptide methyl esters to deprotonate in the mass spectrometer.

Research paper thumbnail of A Comparison of the Effects of Amide and Acid Groups at the C-Terminus on the Collision-Induced Dissociation of Deprotonated Peptides

The dissociative behavior of peptide amides and free acids was explored using low-energy collisio... more The dissociative behavior of peptide amides and free acids was explored using low-energy collision-induced dissociation and high level computational theory. Both positive and negative ion modes were utilized, but the most profound differences were observed for the deprotonated species. Deprotonated peptide amides produce a characteristic c m-2 product ion (where m is the number of residues in the peptide) that is either absent or in low abundance in the analogous peptide acid spectrum. Peptide acids show an enhanced formation of c m-3 -; however, this is not generally as pronounced as c m-2 production from amides. The most notable occurrence of an amide-specific product ion is for laminin amide (YIGSR-NH 2 ) and this case was investigated using several modified peptides. Mechanisms involving 6-and 9-membered ring formation were proposed, and their energetic properties were investigated using G3(MP2) molecular orbital theory calculations. For example, with C-terminal deprotonation of pentaglycine amide, formation of c m-2 and a 6-membered ring diketopiperazine neutral requires 931.6 kcal/mol, which is 26.1 kcal/mol less than the analogous process involving the peptide acid. The end group specific fragmentation of peptide amides in the negative ion mode may be useful for identifying such groups in proteomic applications.

Research paper thumbnail of Facile C-H bond activation for deuterium and tritium labeling of glycoconjugates conducted in ultrasonic and microwave fields: A review