Mass spectrometric analysis of oxidized tryptophan

Article abstract of DOI:10.1002/(SICI)1096-9888(199809)33:9<884::AID-JMS698>3.0.CO;2-S

Oxindolylalanine and oxindolylalanine-containing peptides were prepared by treatment of tryptophan and tryptophan-containing peptides with mixtures of dimethyl sulfoxide and hydrochloric acid in acetic acid (DMSO-HCl-HAc). The reaction between tryptophan and DMSO-HCl-HAc was monitored by fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry (FAB-MS) and the proposed chlorotryptophan intermediate in the reaction was observed. Almost complete conversion of tryptophan to oxindolylalanine was obtained in reaction mixtures containing 3.75 M HCl when the reaction was performed in an open tube. A higher HCl concentration (5.5 M) and a closed reaction tube promoted the formation of by-products, such as dioxindolylalanine and 3-chlorooxindolylalanine. Extensive hydrolysis C-terminal of tryptophan was observed when tryptophan-containing peptides were treated with DMSO-HCl-HAc containing 5.5 M HCl, during which the tryptophan residue was modified to dioxindolylalanine lactone. Hydrolysis was not observed in mixtures containing 3.75 M HCl. The presence of oxindolylalanine in peptides could be demonstrated by characteristic peaks in FAB collision-induced dissociation tandem mass spectra.

Full text of DOI:10.1002/(SICI)1096-9888(199809)33:9<884::AID-JMS698>3.0.CO;2-S

JOURNAL OF MASS SPECTROMETRY
J. Mass Spectrom. 33, 884È891 (1998)
Mass Spectrometric Analysis of Oxidized
Tryptophan
Marco van de Weert,*¤ Fija M. Lagerwerf,” Johan Haverkamp and Wigger Heerma
Department of Mass Spectrometry, Bijvoet Center for Biomolecular Research, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80083, 3508 TB
Utrecht, The Netherlands
Oxindolylalanine and oxindolylalanine-containing peptides were prepared by treatment of tryptophan and
tryptophan-containing peptides with mixtures of dimethyl sulfoxide and hydrochloric acid in acetic acid (DMSO–
HCl–HAc). The reaction between tryptophan and DMSO–HCl–HAc was monitored by fast atom bombardment
mass spectrometry (FAB-MS) and the proposed chlorotryptophan intermediate in the reaction was observed.
Almost complete conversion of tryptophan to oxindolylalanine was obtained in reaction mixtures containing 3.75 M
HCl when the reaction was performed in an open tube. A higher HCl concentration (5.5 M) and a closed reaction
tube promoted the formation of by-products, such as dioxindolylalanine and 3-chlorooxindolylalanine. Extensive
hydrolysis C-terminal of tryptophan was observed when tryptophan-containing peptides were treated with DMSO–
HCl–HAc containing 5.5 M HCl, during which the tryptophan residue was modiÐed to dioxindolylalanine lactone.
Hydrolysis was not observed in mixtures containing 3.75 M HCl. The presence of oxindolylalanine in peptides could
be demonstrated by characteristic peaks in FAB collision-induced dissociation tandem mass spectra. ( 1998 John
Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
KEYWORDS: tryptophan; tryptophan-containing peptides; oxidation; oxindolylalanine; fast atom bombardment;
collision-induced dissociation tandem mass spectrometry
non-oxidized species, e.g. a shortened retention time in
INTRODUCTION
RP-HPLC analysis.14 In some cases the method of
analysis also allows characterization of the product, e.g.
oxidation products of tryptophan (Trp) yield speciÐc
changes in UV absorption spectra.16 However, the
detection and characterization of oxidation in peptides
and proteins of unknown sequence are much more diffi-
cult, since changes indicative of modiÐcation cannot be
detected using these methods. Recently, a tandem mass
spectrometric method was developed which allows
simultaneous detection and characterization of oxidized
methionine (Met) residues in peptides of known and
unknown sequence.19 The tandem mass spectra of pep-
tides containing oxidized Met residues show character-
istic product ions. This mass spectrometric procedure
may also be used for the analysis of peptides containing
oxidized Trp residues. In contrast to Met, oxidation of
Trp can yield various products, several of which are
isomers.2,15,17,20h24 A number of these products are
shown in Scheme 1.
Oxidation of peptides and proteins is a frequently
occurring phenomenon in vitro during various analyti-
cal and synthetic procedures, during storage and under
physiological conditions,1h8 but may also occur in vivo.1
ModiÐcation of amino acids alters the physico-chemical
and functional properties of peptides and proteins, and
may even result in toxic products.1,9 For example, accu-
mulation of oxidized proteins in vivo has been related to
diseases such as cataract, emphysema and rheumatoid
arthritis.1,10h12 Furthermore, oxidation is known to
decrease the nutritional value of food and feedstu†s.9,13
Detection of possibly oxidized products is usually
performed by reversed-phase high-performance liquid
chromatography
(RP-HPLC)14,
UV
spectro-
metry11,15h17 or mass spectrometry.2,4,18,19 In most
cases, detection is based on the di†erent behaviour
of the oxidized product compared with the (known)
A common oxidation product of Trp is oxindolylala-
nine (Oia), which is observed when Trp is treated with,
e.g., hydrogen peroxide,9 trichloromethylperoxy radicals
(
CCl OO~)24 or iron(III) cyanide.5 Generally, the yield
3
of Oia is low, whereas several other products may also
be
produced,
including
the
isomeric
5-
*
Correspondence to: M. van de Weert, Department of Phar-
hydroxytryptophan (5-OH-Trp). High yields of Oia
(80%) can be obtained within 1 h by treatment of Trp
with a mixture of dimethyl sulfoxide and hydrochloric
acid in acetic acid (DMSOÈHClÈHAc).15,16,18 This
mixture also oxidizes cysteine (Cys) to cystine and Met
to methionine sulfoxide, while slight overoxidation of
Trp to dioxindolylalanine (Dia) may be observed. The
maceutics, Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences, Utrecht
University, P.O. Box 80082, 3508 TB Utrecht, The Netherlands
E-mail: m.vandeweert=pharm.uu.nl
¤
Present address: Department of Pharmaceutics, Utrecht Institute
for Pharmaceutical Sciences, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80082,
3
508 TB Utrecht, The Netherlands.
Present address: Pharma Bio-Research Laboratories P.O. Box
00, 9470 AE Zuidlaren, The Netherlands
”
2
CCC 1076È5174/98/090884È08 $17.50
1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Received 24 March 1998
Accepted 10 June 1998
(

MS OF OXIDIZED TRYPTOPHAN
885
Scheme 1. Tryptophan and related (oxidation) products.
proposed reaction mechanism is shown in Scheme 2.15
It has been proposed that in DMSOÈHClÈHAc mix-
tures, chlorosulfonium ions are formed,25 which then
react with Trp to yield a 3-chlorotryptophan ion.15
Addition of water to the chlorinated tryptophan, fol-
lowed by deprotonation and elimination of HCl, result
in the generation of 2-hydroxytryptophan (2-OH-Trp).
This enol species is in equilibrium with the keto species,
Oia. Electrochemical experiments have shown the exis-
tence of the enol species,23 but in other experiments the
keto form better explains the behaviour, e.g. diastereo-
isomers are observed in RP-HPLC.20
The aim of this work was to investigate the proposed
mechanism of the oxidation of Trp by DMSOÈHClÈ
HAc and to characterize intermediate and reaction pro-
ducts using fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry
(FAB-MS) and collision-induced dissociation tandem
mass spectrometry (CID-MS/MS). A second objective
was the identiÐcation of fragment ions which are char-
acteristic of oxidized Trp residues in peptides.
Scheme 2. Reaction scheme of tryptophan oxidation in DMSO–HCl–HAc (cf. Ref. 15).
(
1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
J. Mass Spectrom. 33, 884È891 (1998)

8
86
M. VAN DE WEERT ET AL .
Data acquisition and processing were performed using
an HP-9000 data system. Average proÐle spectra (4È8
scans) are given.
EXPERIMENTAL
Reagents
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Glacial acetic acid and 14 M hydrochloric acid were
purchased from Lamers en Pleuger (Ïs Hertogenbosch,
The Netherlands), dimethyl sulfoxide was purchased
from Aldrich (Milwaukee, WI, USA). D,L-Tryptophan
was of unknown origin; impurities were not observed in
its FAB mass spectrum. d-Sleep-inducing peptide (WÈ
AÈGÈGÈDÈAÈSÈGÈE), luteinizing hormone-releasing
Oxidation of Trp by DMSO–HCl–HAc, reaction
kinetics and products
The reaction between Trp and DMSOÈHClÈHAc was
monitored using FAB-MS. Apart from the ions which
can be assigned to glycerol, DMSO and clusters thereof,
a number of ions, at m/z 205, 221, 237, 239, 241, 255,
hormone
(pyroEÈHÈWÈSÈYÈGÈLÈRÈPÈGÈNH ),
2
angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor (PÈTÈHÈIÈKÈ
WÈGÈD), adrenocorticotropic hormone (4È9) (MÈEÈHÈ
2
57 and 267, were observed in the spectra. These ions
FÈRÈW) and [D-Pro2,D-Phe7,D-Trp9]-substance
P
probably correspond to the starting product, interme-
diate product(s) and Ðnal products. We presumed the
ions below m/z 200 to be fragment ions of the various
reaction products. Both m/z 239 and 241 ions, and also
m/z 255 and 257 ions, occur in a 3 : 1 abundance ratio in
every spectrum, indicating the presence of a chlorine
atom in these species. This was conÐrmed by compari-
son of the FAB-CID mass spectra of these ions (data
not shown). The FAB-CID mass spectra of the ions at
m/z 205, 221, 237, 255 and 267 are shown in Fig. 1. In
addition, the relative abundances of these ions are
shown in Table 1 as a function of reaction time.
(
RÈPÈKÈPÈQÈQÈFÈFÈWÈLÈMÈNH ) were purchased
2
from Saxon Biochemicals (Hannover, Germany) and
used without further puriÐcation.
Preparation of DMSO–HCl–HAc mixtures
Two DMSOÈHClÈHAc mixtures were prepared by
slowly adding 2 ml of 14 M HCl to either 2 or 4 ml of
HAc. To both mixtures 400 ll of DMSO were then
added while maintaining room temperature. The com-
positions of the two solutions were thus 1 : 5 : 5 (v/v)
DMSOÈHClÈHAc (5.5 M HCl) and 1 : 5 : 10 (v/v)
DMSOÈHClÈHAc (3.75 M HCl). The solutions were
stored in a tightly closed tube and used within a few
days.
The ion at m/z 205 [Fig. 1(a)] corresponds to proto-
nated Trp, and its mass spectrum is identical with that
of untreated Trp. The ion at m/z 221 corresponds to
protonated Oia, and its CID spectrum [Fig. 1(b)] is
similar to that of Trp, exhibiting only apparent intensity
di†erences and mass increases of 16 u of some fragment
ions. As in the spectrum of Trp, side-chain fragment
ions are observed in the spectrum of Oia. Owing to the
inherent stability of CÈC bonds connected to conju-
gated systems, in the spectrum of Trp the abundance of
the m/z 130 ion (C ÈC bond cleavage) is much higher
Oxidation of Trp and Trp-containing peptides with
DMSO–HCl–HAc
Trp and the Trp-containing peptides were treated with
either of the DMSOÈHClÈHAc mixtures at room tem-
perature by adding 100È200 ll of the mixture to ca. 200
lg of dry compound in an Eppendorf microtube. The
reaction mixtures were left at room temperature for
periods from 15 min to several days in the case of Trp,
and from 1 to 24 h for the peptides, after which they
were analyzed mass spectrometrically.
a
b
than that of m/z 117 (C ÈC cleavage). In contrast, the
b
c
side-chain fragment ions of Oia at m/z 146 and 133 are
of equal abundance, indicating the absence of a conju-
gated substituent at C . This is in agreement with
c
expected absence of aromaticity in the oxindolyl ring.
The relatively low abundance and the abundance
changes with time of m/z 239 (Table 1) indicate that this
formally corresponds to the [MH]` ion of a chlorine-
containing intermediate (Scheme 2). The presence of a
chlorine atom was conÐrmed by FAB-CID analysis of
m/z 239 and 241 ions, as both spectra contained charac-
teristic fragment ions formed by elimination of HCl
from [MH]` (data not shown). However, owing to the
low abundance and interference from matrix ions, full
structural assignment was not possible.
FAB-MS and FAB-CID-MS/MS
Positive-ion FAB mass spectra were recorded on a
JEOL JMS-SX/SX102A four sector instrument of
B E ÈB E geometry, operating at an accelerating
1
1
2 2
voltage of 10 kV. The xenon FAB gun was operated at
kV and 5 mA emission current. The scan rate was 30 s
6
for the m/z 0È2400 range and the resolution was 1000.
About 2 ll of the sample solution, corresponding to ca.
1
0 nmol of the starting material, directly taken from the
The ions at m/z 237, 255/257 and 267 originate from
by-products in the reaction. The species at m/z 237
probably represents protonated Dia, a known by-
product [Fig. 1(c)].15,16 The FAB-CID mass spectra of
m/z 255 [Fig. 1(d)] and 267 [Fig. 1(e)] show many char-
acteristics similar to those of protonated Dia. The frag-
ment ion at m/z 219 is probably produced by
reaction mixture, were added to ca. 1 ll of glycerol
(
OPG Farma, Utrecht, The Netherlands). FAB mass
spectra were obtained by scanning the magnet of MS-1.
FAB-CID mass spectra were acquired by selecting the
desired precursor ion with MS-1 and pressurizing the
collision cell in the third Ðeld-free region with nitrogen
until the main beam from MS-1 was reduced to ca. 50%
of its original intensity. The resulting high-energy CID
spectra were obtained by B/E linked scanning of MS-2.
elimination of water, HCl and CH SH from the [MH]`
3
species at m/z 237, 255 and 267, respectively. Hence the
ions at m/z 255 and 267 are proposed to correspond to
(
1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
J. Mass Spectrom. 33, 884È891 (1998)

MS OF OXIDIZED TRYPTOPHAN
887
Figure 1. FAB-CID mass spectra of ions observed when Trp is treated with DMSO–HCl–HAc mixtures. (a) m/z 205; (b) m/z 221; (c) m/z
37; (d) m/z 255; (e) m/z 267. Complete side-chain ions are indicated by asterisks.
2
protonated 3-chloro-Oia and 3-thiomethoxy-Oia,
respectively. 3-Chloro-Oia is not an unexpected by-
product, since it is known that 3-bromo-Oia can be iso-
lated when Trp is treated with DMSOÈHBrÈHAc.17
The very abundant fragment ion at m/z 146 in Fig.
1(c)È(e) has been noted earlier in the FAB mass spec-
trum of a dioxindolylmoiety-containing dipeptide.26
O stin et al.26 proposed this to be the oxoquinolonium
3
-Bromo-Oia is unstable in the presence of water and
ion (protonated oxoquinoline, Scheme 1), which is the
same ion as proposed for m/z 146 in Oia. However, as
shown in Fig. 2, the FAB-CID mass spectra of these
two ions are di†erent. The most abundant ion (m/z 118)
arising from fragmentation of m/z 146 from Oia prob-
ably corresponds to elimination of CO (28 u), which is
consistent with the structure of the oxoquinolonium
can react further to give Dia.17 A similar conversion
may also occur with 3-chloro-Oia in the presence of
water. The thiomethoxy species is only observed after
prolonged exposure of Trp to DMSOÈHClÈHAc in a
closed tube. It is unclear what reaction causes the for-
mation of this by-product.
(
1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
J. Mass Spectrom. 33, 884È891 (1998)

8
88
M. VAN DE WEERT ET AL .
Table 1. Relative abundances of selected ions as a function of reaction time in the FAB mass spectra of Trp treated with
DMSO–HCl–HAca
5
.5 M HCl
3.75 M HCl
Open tube
Closed tube
Open tube
Closed tube
1
5
100
185
min
15
100
185
min
25
145
min
25
145
min
m/z
min
min
2 days
min
min
2 days
min
2 days
min
2 days
2
05
21
39
37
55
67
21
4
1.6
1.5
93
0
9.5
1.2
3.6
1.2
48
0
27
70
2.5
20
79
0.6
0
1.9
95
0
15
79
1.7
93
0
2
93
0
2
2
2
2
2
75
4
92
95
84
91
88
0
0
4.7
0
0
0
4.9
0
1.4
2.2
0
1
5.5
0
1
2.3
6.4
0
31
15
3.9
0
0
0
2.8
0
0
0.8
4.2
0
2.5
2.2
0.7
0.8
2.1
0
1.8
0
6.5
0
0.6
0
0.9
0
0
0
0
a Relative abundances (%) are presented as a fraction of the total abundance all selected ions.
ion. In contrast, the main ion (m/z 128) from fragmenta-
tion of m/z 146 of Dia corresponds to elimination of
water (18 u). The latter could represent the presence of
an alcohol or aldehyde group in this species. However,
the structural information which could be derived from
the CID spectrum [Fig. 2(b)] appeared to be insufficient
to propose a reliable structure.
In Table 1 the e†ect of two reaction variables on
reaction kinetics is shown. Apparently, a higher HCl
concentration and the use of a closed reaction tube
Figure 2. FAB-CID mass spectra of the fragment ion at m/z 146 of (a) Oia and (b) Dia.
1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. J. Mass Spectrom. 33, 884È891 (1998)
(

MS OF OXIDIZED TRYPTOPHAN
889
increase the oxidation rate. This can be rationalized by
the e†ect of both variables on the proposed equilibria in
DMSOÈHClÈHAc mixtures, shown in Scheme 3.15,25,27
Increasing the HCl concentration and closing the reac-
tion tube will inÑuence equilibria (1)È(3) and equi-
librium (5), respectively, yielding a higher concentration
of the principal reactive species, the chlorosulfonium
ion. The combination of a high HCl concentration and
closing the reaction tube apparently yields relatively
large amounts of by-products. This may also be a con-
sequence of accumulation of the chlorosulfonium ion in
the reaction tube.
dues, e.g. at threonine (Thr) and serine (Ser) residues,
and acid-induced hydrolysis. In Fig. 3 the FAB mass
spectra of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor
(ACEI, M 952.5) treated with DMSOÈHClÈHAc con-
taining (a) 3.75 and (b) 5.5 M HCl are shown. In Fig. 3(a)
the main product is observed at m/z 969.5, which corre-
sponds to mono-oxidized ACEI. CID sequence analysis
of this compound (data not shown) showed that the Trp
residue was oxidized. Another product is observed at
m/z 1011.5, corresponding to acetylated [Oia6]-ACEI.
CID sequence analysis of this compound pointed to
acetylation of the Thr residue (data not shown).
[
Oia6]-ACEI and acetylated [Oia6]-ACEI are also
observed in Fig. 3(b). In addition, Dia- and 3-
thiomethoxy-Oia-containing ACEI are observed,
including their acetylated analogues. In Fig. 3(b), a very
abundant ion is observed at m/z 795.5, with its acety-
lated analogue at m/z 837.6. This mass does not corre-
spond to a common fragment ion (A, B or YA ions) of
one of the reaction products. Moreover, its intensity is
much higher than those of the other ions, which further
indicates that we are dealing with a new reaction
product, rather than a fragment ion. CID sequence
analysis of this compound (data not shown) yielded the
amino acid sequence PTHIKX, in which X is an
unidentiÐed amino acid. This corresponds to the N-
terminal part of ACEI up to the Trp residue, which
apparently has been altered to yield a new amino acid
residue with a residue mass of 200 u. It is known that
peptides can be hydrolyzed by DMSOÈHBrÈHAc mix-
tures at the C-terminal amide bond of the Trp residue,
during which the Trp residue is converted into Dia
lactone (Scheme 1).17 Apparently, the same hydrolysis
also occurs when peptides are treated with DMSOÈ
HClÈHAc mixtures containing 5.5 M HCl, but not 3.75
M HCl. In fact, all peptides used in this study yielded
this type of hydrolysis in mixtures of 5.5 M HCl. Addi-
tionally, the C-terminal Trp of adrenocorticotropic
hormone (4È9) was partly altered to Dia lactone. Closer
Oxidation of Trp-containing peptides
Trp-containing peptides were treated with DMSOÈ
HClÈHAc in an open tube to minimize by-product for-
mation. Nonetheless, the by-products observed earlier,
Dia, 3-chloro-Oia and 3-thiomethoxy-Oia, may still be
observed, in addition to other products. The latter
include oxidation of methionine residues to methionine
sulfoxide,15,18 acid-induced acetylation of peptide resi-
Scheme 3. Equilibria in water-containing DMSO–HCl mixtures
(
cf. Refs 25 and 27).
Figure 3. FAB mass spectra of ACEI treated in an open tube for 1 h with DMSO–HCl–HAc mixtures containing (a) 3.75 and (b) 5.5 M HCl.
(
1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
J. Mass Spectrom. 33, 884È891 (1998)

8
90
M. VAN DE WEERT ET AL .
analysis of Fig. 3(b) also reveals an ion at m/z 797.5, the
abundance of which is too high to be an isotope peak of
m/z 795.5. CID sequence analysis of this compound
indicated this to be the peptide PTHIKX, in which the
unknown amino acid was Oia.
longer attached to a conjugated system, as expected for
Oia. Both the elimination of oxoquinoline and the pres-
ence and identity of a corresponding W ion may allow
distinction between Oia and 5-, 6- or 7-hydroxy-Trp.
The last species will probably show loss of the side-
chain from [MH]` as a radical and the formation of a
V ion, analogous to Trp.
By adjustment of the reaction conditions, i.e. HCl
concentration of 3.75 M and 1 h reaction time, hydro-
lysis could be prevented and the Trp residues in all pep-
tides selectively converted into Oia. In Fig. 4 the
FAB-CID mass spectrum of protonated Oia-containing
luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone ([Oia3]-LH-
RH) is shown. The spectrum of this compound is char-
acteristic for Oia-containing peptides. The presence of
Oia is reÑected in its immonium ion at m/z 175, a mass
di†erence of 202 u between subsequent sequence ions
and [MH]` [ 145 u at m/z 1053.5 (Fig. 4). The elimi-
nated neutral species of 145 u probably corresponds to
oxoquinoline (Scheme 1). In the high-energy CID
spectra of peptides, loss of side-chains as radicals from
CONCLUSIONS
In order to investigate the mass spectrometric charac-
teristics of oxidized Trp and oxidized Trp-containing
peptides, it was necessary Ðrst to prepare these com-
pounds. It was demonstrated that Oia and Oia-
containing peptides can be obtained by treatment of
Trp and Trp-containing peptides with DMSOÈHClÈ
HAc mixtures. However, the HCl concentration must
not exceed 4 M and the reaction tube should not be
closed in order to prevent the formation of by-products
and hydrolysis of the peptide at the Trp residue.
In general, oxidation of peptides of known sequence
can be detected by their di†erent behavior in various
analytical procedures compared with the non-oxidized
species, such as a mass increase in mass spectrometric
analysis or shortened retention times in RP-HPLC
analysis. Characterization of the product(s) then
requires further analysis, such as by FAB-CID to deter-
mine site(s) of modiÐcation and the resulting product.
However, in FAB-CID analysis of peptides of known
and unknown sequence, characteristic product ions may
be present, which allow the simultaneous detection and
characterization of the oxidation product(s). We have
shown here that oxidation of Trp residues to Oia can be
recognized by several characteristic product ions in the
FAB-CID mass spectra of oxidized species. The most
important marker ion results from elimination of oxo-
quinoline from [MH]`, yielding an abundant fragment
[
MH]` is frequently observed, e.g. [MH]` [ 130 u
from Trp-containing peptides. Apparently, the side-
chain of Oia is not lost as a radical, but rather elimi-
nated as a molecule with concomitant hydrogen transfer
to the backbone of the peptide. However, in adreno-
corticotropic hormone (4È9), which contains a C-
terminal Oia, the side-chain was lost as a radical,
indicating the inÑuence of the position of Oia in the
peptide backbone on its fragmentation behavior.
Another characteristic product ion was only observed
in the spectrum of [Oia3]-LH-RH, at m/z 802.4. Owing
to the speciÐc amino acid sequence of LH-RH, with an
arginine residue near the C-terminus, the side-chain spe-
ciÐc V and W ions are produced. Generally, the aro-
matic amino acids yield V ions28 and, in agreement, a V
ion was observed at m/z 803.4 in the FAB-CID mass
spectrum of LH-RH (data not shown). In [Oia3]-LH-
RH, however, a W ion was observed (m/z 802.4). Since
the formation of a W ion requires cleavage of the
C ÈC -bond,28 this indicates that C ÈC is no
b
c
b
c
Figure 4. FAB-CID mass spectrum of Oia-containing luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (pyroE–H–X–S–Y–G–L–R–P–G–NH , in
which X is Oia). Characteristic mass differences of Oia-containing peptides are indicated.
2
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1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
J. Mass Spectrom. 33, 884È891 (1998)

MS OF OXIDIZED TRYPTOPHAN
891
ion at [MH]` [ 145 u. However, peptides containing
Oia at the C-terminal position show preferential loss of
the complete side-chain as a radical (146 u). Further evi-
dence for the presence of Oia is the Oia immonium ion
at m/z 175. A mass di†erence of 202 u between sub-
sequent sequence ions then indicates the position of the
Oia residue in the sequence. Finally, in the FAB-CID
spectra of peptides containing arginine at or near the
C-terminus, a W ion may be observed at the position of
Oia.
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