Electrophoresis of Phosphoproteins on a Tandem Polymerized Gel

A substrate with n phosphorylated sites may have 2n phosphor-forms for temporal-spatial regulation of biological events. Because phosphates do not significantly change molecular masses but net charges of proteins, those isoforms cannot be separated by regular mass-based sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS PAGE). A tandem polymerized gel was developed to resolve phosphor-isoforms with different masses, charges, and posttranslational modifications. Without the usage of SDS, the electrophoresis was primarily performed on three adjacent acidic polyacrylamide gels. After being concentrated on a stacking gel, protonated proteins were then separated on the Zr4+ immobilized gel through the coordination of metal ions with phosphates followed by further charge and mass (z/m)-based electrophoretic separation on a TiO2 containing gel. The presence of TiO2 nanoparticles in the third gel is aimed for the initiation of the polymerization of acrylamide in acidic conditions upon ultraviolet irradiation. Distinct isoforms of α-S1-casein, α-S2-casein, β-casein, and κ casein model proteins located on 11, 8, 8, and 7 different bands of the tandem gel were unambiguously identified, respectively. With the tandem polymerized gel electrophoresis, new phosphorylation events that may occur simultaneously or sequentially were discovered in not only model proteins but also complex biological samples including human saliva, chicken egg, and sprouting maize. This provides a new tool to dissect complex biological processes that are triggered by dynamic phosphorylation events.