Detecting Protein-Glycolipid Interactions Using CaR-ESI-MS and Model Membranes: Comparison of Pre-loaded and Passively Loaded Picodiscs.

Catch-and-release electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (CaR-ESI-MS), implemented using model membranes (MMs), is a promising approach for the discovery of glycolipid ligands of glycan-binding proteins (GBPs). Picodiscs (PDs), which are lipid-transporting complexes composed of the human sphingolipid activator protein saposin A and phospholipids, have proven to be useful MMs for such studies. The present work compares the use of conventional (pre-loaded) PDs with passively loaded PDs (PDs) for CaR-ESI-MS screening of glycolipids against cholera toxin B subunit homopentamer (CTB). The pre-loaded PDs were prepared from a mixture of purified glycolipid and phospholipid or a mixture of lipids extracted from tissue, while the PDs were prepared by incubating PDs containing only phospholipid with glycolipid-containing lipid mixtures in aqueous solution. Time-dependent changes in the composition of the PDs produced by incubation with glycomicelles of the ganglioside GM1 were monitored using collision-induced dissociation of the gaseous PD ions and from the extent of ganglioside binding to CTB measured by ESI-MS. GM1 incorporation into PDs was evident within a few hours of incubation. At incubation times ≥ 10 days, GM1 binding to CTB was indistinguishable from that observed with pre-loaded PDs produced directly from GM1 at the same concentration. Comparison of ganglioside binding to CTB measured for pre-loaded PDs and PDs prepared from glycolipids extracted from pig and mouse brain revealed that the PDs allow for the detection of a greater number of ganglioside ligands. Together, the results of this study suggest PDs may have advantages over conventionally prepared PDs for screening glycolipids against GBPs using CaR-ESI-MS. Graphical Abstract ᅟ.