Multistage mass spectrometric sequencing of keratan sulfate-related oligosaccharides.

To establish a universal protocol for sequencing keratan sulfate (KS) using mass spectrometry (MS), systematic electrospray ionization-MSn fragmentation experiments were carried out for 10 KS-related oligosaccharides of defined structure. Under the experimental conditions employed, fully charged molecular-related ions were observed as dominant peaks in all MS(1) spectra, which clearly reflected the number of sulfates and sialic acids in the oligosaccharide structures. In the subsequent MS2, almost all of the oligosaccharides gave fragment ions corresponding to their dehydrated molecular-related ions as well as (0,2)A(r) scission ions (according to the nomenclature developed by Domon and Costello, where "r" represents the reducing end in this study). Further fragmentation of the (0,2)A(r) ions in MS3 predominantly yielded the corresponding (2,4)A(r) ions. Finally, in MS(4), these (2,4)A(r) ions were subjected to extensive glycosidic cleavage. Hence, the MS4 data of KS oligosaccharides provided sufficient information for their sequence determination. In addition, some important features of MSn fragmentation became evident. These findings should lead to the establishment of consensus rules applied for KS oligosaccharides, including those previously unidentified, and also accelerate functional studies on KS, i.e., KS-related glycosaminoglycomics.