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Mass Spectrometry Facility

The MUSC Mass Spectrometry Facility provides expertise, services, education, and state-of-the-art instrumentation to enhance biomedical research endeavors through LC-MS/MS-based proteomics.

Services are offered for protein identification; characterization of post-translational modifications; and quantitative proteomics to identify differentially expressed/degraded proteins, regulated sites of post-translational modification, protein-protein interactions, and protein targets of drugs identified in phenotypic screens. Analyses include sample preparation, LC-MS/MS, database searching, generation of reports, and assistance with data interpretation.

Faculty and staff assist with experimental design and the development/optimization of customized methodology for analysis of post-translationally modified peptides (e.g. phosphorylation and O-GlcNAc modification, N- and O-linked glycosylation, Cys modifications including S-glutathionylation, and glycation of Lys and Arg).

Quantitative approaches including metabolic labeling (SILAC), isobaric tagging (iTRAQ/TMT), and label free proteomics (LFQ) are performed on the Orbitrap Elite or Orbitrap Fusion Lumos Mass Spectrometers. We are developing methodology to identify alterations in post-translational modifications that impact signal transduction, transcription, translation, and the response to therapeutics with the goal of enabling investigators to discover molecular mechanisms underlying disease progression and therapeutic response.

Recent Publications

Nimitvilai, S., Uys, J. D., Woodward, J. J., Randall, P. K., Ball, L. E., Williams, R. W., Jones, B. C., Lu, L., Grant, K. A., & Mulholland, P. J. (2017). Orbitofrontal Neuroadaptations and Cross-Species Synaptic Biomarkers in Heavy-Drinking Macaques. The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience, 37(13), 3646–3660. https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0133-17.2017

Uys, J. D., McGuier, N. S., Gass, J. T., Griffin, W. C., 3rd, Ball, L. E., & Mulholland, P. J. (2016). Chronic intermittent ethanol exposure and withdrawal leads to adaptations in nucleus accumbens core postsynaptic density proteome and dendritic spines. Addiction biology, 21(3), 560–574. https://doi.org/10.1111/adb.12238

Hurst, K. E., Lawrence, K. A., Robino, R. A., Ball, L. E., Chung, D., & Thaxton, J. E. (2020). Remodeling Translation Primes CD8+ T-cell Antitumor Immunity. Cancer immunology research, 8(5), 587–595. https://doi.org/10.1158/2326-6066.CIR-19-0516

Zhang, L., Zhang, J., Ye, Z., Manevich, Y., Ball, L. E., Bethard, J. R., Jiang, Y. L., Broome, A. M., Dalton, A. C., Wang, G. Y., Townsend, D. M., & Tew, K. D. (2019). Isoflavone ME-344 Disrupts Redox Homeostasis and Mitochondrial Function by Targeting Heme Oxygenase 1. Cancer research, 79(16), 4072–4085. https://doi.org/10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-18-3503

Angel, P. M., Schwamborn, K., Comte-Walters, S., Clift, C. L., Ball, L. E., Mehta, A. S., & Drake, R. R. (2019). Extracellular Matrix Imaging of Breast Tissue Pathologies by MALDI-Imaging Mass Spectrometry. Proteomics. Clinical applications, 13(1), e1700152. https://doi.org/10.1002/prca.201700152

Angel, P. M., Comte-Walters, S., Ball, L. E., Talbot, K., Mehta, A., Brockbank, K. G. M., & Drake, R. R. (2018). Mapping Extracellular Matrix Proteins in Formalin-Fixed, Paraffin-Embedded Tissues by MALDI Imaging Mass Spectrometry. Journal of proteome research, 17(1), 635–646. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jproteome.7b00713

Kim, M. J., Vargas, M. R., Harlan, B. A., Killoy, K. M., Ball, L. E., Comte-Walters, S., Gooz, M., Yamamoto, Y., Beckman, J. S., Barbeito, L., & Pehar, M. (2018). Nitration and Glycation Turn Mature NGF into a Toxic Factor for Motor Neurons: A Role for p75NTR and RAGE Signaling in ALS. Antioxidants & redox signaling, 28(18), 1587–1602. https://doi.org/10.1089/ars.2016.6966

Nagel, A. K., & Ball, L. E. (2014). O-GlcNAc modification of the runt-related transcription factor 2 (Runx2) links osteogenesis and nutrient metabolism in bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells. Molecular & cellular proteomics : MCP, 13(12), 3381–3395. https://doi.org/10.1074/mcp.M114.040691 *Article featured on journal cover and website.

Nagel, A. K., Schilling, M., Comte-Walters, S., Berkaw, M. N., & Ball, L. E. (2013). Identification of O-linked N-acetylglucosamine (O-GlcNAc)-modified osteoblast proteins by electron transfer dissociation tandem mass spectrometry reveals proteins critical for bone formation. Molecular & cellular proteomics : MCP, 12(4), 945–955. https://doi.org/10.1074/mcp.M112.026633

Song, J. H., Padi, S. K., Luevano, L. A., Minden, M. D., DeAngelo, D. J., Hardiman, G., Ball, L. E., Warfel, N. A., & Kraft, A. S. (2016). Insulin receptor substrate 1 is a substrate of the Pim protein kinases. Oncotarget, 7(15), 20152–20165. https://doi.org/10.18632/oncotarget.7918

Kruyer, A., Ball, L. E., Townsend, D. M., Kalivas, P. W., & Uys, J. D. (2019). Post-translational S-glutathionylation of cofilin increases actin cycling during cocaine seeking. PloS one, 14(9), e0223037. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0223037

Zhang, J., Ye, Z. W., Chen, W., Manevich, Y., Mehrotra, S., Ball, L., Janssen-Heininger, Y., Tew, K. D., & Townsend, D. M. (2018). S-Glutathionylation of estrogen receptor α affects dendritic cell function. The Journal of biological chemistry, 293(12), 4366–4380. https://doi.org/10.1074/jbc.M117.814327

Pehar, M., Ball, L. E., Sharma, D. R., Harlan, B. A., Comte-Walters, S., Neely, B. A., & Vargas, M. R. (2016). Changes in Protein Expression and Lysine Acetylation Induced by Decreased Glutathione Levels in Astrocytes. Molecular & cellular proteomics : MCP, 15(2), 493–505. https://doi.org/10.1074/mcp.M115.049288

Williams, G. R., Bethard, J. R., Berkaw, M. N., Nagel, A. K., Luttrell, L. M., & Ball, L. E. (2016). Exploring G protein-coupled receptor signaling networks using SILAC-based phosphoproteomics. Methods (San Diego, Calif.), 92, 36–50. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ymeth.2015.06.022

Mass Spectrometry Publication Acknowledgment

Please place the following text in the Acknowledgments section of publications and abstracts:

Proteomic analysis was performed at the Mass Spectrometry Facility, a University Shared Research Resource at the Medical University of South Carolina, using instrumentation acquired through the NIH shared instrumentation grant program (S10 OD010731-Orbitrap Elite Mass Spectrometer or Orbitrap Fusion Lumos ETD/UVD MS (S10 OD025126).

For projects related to the Proteomics Core of the Redox Center, please also cite the SC COBRE in Oxidants, Redox Balance, and Stress Signaling (P20 GM103542-Proteomics Core).

For NIH-tracking purposes, please link your publication to the shared instrumentation grant (S10 OD010731-Orbitrap Elite Mass Spectrometer) within My Bibliography of My NCBI.

Please let us know when you publish!

Mass Spectrometry Analysis Request

Staff is available for consultation during all stages of proteomics experiments (from experimental design to publication). First-time users of the resource should contact the facility to ensure their samples are compatible with mass spectrometry.

To request service, go to your core’s Infinity landing page to log in.

If you do not have an Infinity account, use this wizard to request one.

Note: We recommend you access the iLab system using a recent version of Mozilla Firefox browser (free to download).

Facility Administration

Lauren E. Ball, Ph.D.

Associate Professor

Susana Comte-Walters, MS

Redox COBRE Project Manager

Jennifer R. Bethard, MS

Facility Manager
Research Associate

Baylye Boxall-Burnette, MS

Research Specialist

Bernice Agana, Ph.D.

Post-Doctoral Fellow

Kim Norris-Caneda, MS

Research Specialist

We acknowledge support from the MUSC Vice President for Research, College of Medicine, P20 GM103542 (SC COBRE in Oxidants, Redox Balance and Stress Signaling ), S10 OD025126 (Orbitrap Elite), S10 OD010731 (Orbitrap Lumos), U01CA244303 (Reginato/Ball), P30CA138313 (Hollings Cancer Center).

Contact Us

Lauren E. Ball, Ph.D.
Director
843-792-4513
ballle@musc.edu

Jennifer R. Bethard, MS
Facility Manager
bethard@musc.edu

Address

Darby Children's Research Institute
Medical University of South Carolina
171 Ashley Ave
CR305
Charleston, SC 29425

Overall Core Administration