Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization capabilities in the study of non-enzymatic protein glycation.

Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry has been successfully applied in the study of non-enzymatic glycation of different proteins. In the case of bovine serum albumin, glycated by in vitro experiments performed under pseudophysiological conditions, a clear increase in molecular weight is observed with respect to both glucose concentrations and incubation time. The in vitro glycation of ribonuclease with glucose and fructose shows some peculiar differences either in terms of the number of condensed sugar molecules or in terms of the reaction kinetics. The same approach, applied to plasma proteins of healthy and diabetic subjects, provides evidence for the occurrence of glycation of human serum albumin for the latter subjects.