Biology subjects

Tobias, F.

Publications and source records attributed to Tobias, F..

2 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

Optimizing Oxylipin Analysis with Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometry through Bio-Inert Systems and Ion Funnel Adjustments

Oxylipins are potent signaling lipids that affect inflammation, vascular tone, and metabolism, making them relevant in many diseases. Oxylipins are measured with liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS), but challenges in quantification arise due to low abundance and rapid degradation. In this study, we optimize LC-MS methods to improve the quantification of oxylipins in human plasma given growing interest in oxylipins and their impact on clinical research. Plasma samples were obtained from healthy participants and extracted by solid-phase extraction to concentrate the oxylipins. We then utilized a reversed phase targeted LC-MS/MS method using an Agilent 6495D triple quadrupole with transitions for 248 oxylipin species. Ion funnel voltages were set at 50 or 100 volts. Given the rapid degradation of oxylipins with bio-reactive surfaces, we compared both standard and Altura (bio-inert) columns, as well as standard and bio- inert LC setups. We observed that ion funnel parameters significantly alter detectable levels of oxylipins within LC-MS/MS analysis. By decreasing voltages applied to ions inside the ion funnel, signal was increased for most oxylipin species while peak quality was maintained. We also demonstrated that fully bio-inert setups quantify more compounds and show increased levels of some compounds, but fewer epoxyoctadecadienoic acid (EpODE) species. To explore this further, we injected analytical grade alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), the direct precursor of EpODEs, and observed formation of EpODEs within the instrumentation when using stainless steel columns. Our data shows that oxylipins benefit from fully bio-inert systems and optimized pre-mass analyzer parameters. The stainless-steel components of the column may also be contributing to epoxidation reactions of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), generating oxylipin species during analysis. Finally, we utilized this method to perform oxylipin analysis in other human tissues including granulocytes, mononuclear cells, erythrocytes, skeletal muscle, and THP-1 cells, a human derived monocyte cell line.

biochemistry↗

bioRxiv2026

Global Proteomic Analysis of Colorectal Cancers Stratified by Microsatellite Instability Subtype Reveals Protein Differences

Lynch syndrome, historically known as hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer, is caused by germline mutations in the DNA mismatch repair (MMR) genes, MLH1, MSH2 (EPCAM), MSH6, and PMS2. While the genetic changes associated with Lynch Syndrome have previously been characterized, there have not been studies of the associated proteomic alterations, in part because of the limited availability of primary samples and the absence of in vitro model systems. In this study, the first large-scale tissue proteomic assessment of Lynch Syndrome samples as well as three other subtypes of colorectal cancer was completed with specimens from the Ohio Colorectal Cancer Prevention Initiative. The cohort contained three groups of microsatellite unstable (MSI-high) CRC patients (Lynch syndrome, double somatic MMR mutation, and MLH1 hypermethylation) and a group of microsatellite stable (MSS) CRC patients. A total of 122 tumor and complimentary normal mucosa samples from 61 patients were evaluated using label-free bottom-up proteomic analysis. Hierarchical clustering analysis of the global proteome showed that the MSS group was significantly different than the three MSI-high groups. Of the 1,084 proteins found to be dysregulated across all four colorectal cancer subtypes, there were age at diagnosis associated shifts in proteins correlated with tumor proliferation and immune regulation for the Lynch syndrome and Double Somatic samples. The proteins TPD52, GMDS, and DSP showed increased protein abundance correlated with older age at diagnosis. In addition, the Lynch syndrome samples showed substantial sex-based differences in immune and inflammatory pathways, for example, downregulation of ZG16, DIS3, and WDR43. This study fills a critical gap as the first proteomic characterization of Lynch syndrome samples to date. Data are available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD073693. TeaserThis is the first study of the global proteomic differences between Lynch Syndrome and other forms of colorectal cancer.

cancer biology↗