High sensitivity top–down proteomics captures single muscle cell heterogeneity in large proteoforms

JA Melby, KA Brown, ZR Gregorich… - Proceedings of the …, 2023 - National Acad Sciences
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2023National Acad Sciences
Single-cell proteomics has emerged as a powerful method to characterize cellular
phenotypic heterogeneity and the cell-specific functional networks underlying biological
processes. However, significant challenges remain in single-cell proteomics for the analysis
of proteoforms arising from genetic mutations, alternative splicing, and post-translational
modifications. Herein, we have developed a highly sensitive functionally integrated top–
down proteomics method for the comprehensive analysis of proteoforms from single cells …
Single-cell proteomics has emerged as a powerful method to characterize cellular phenotypic heterogeneity and the cell-specific functional networks underlying biological processes. However, significant challenges remain in single-cell proteomics for the analysis of proteoforms arising from genetic mutations, alternative splicing, and post-translational modifications. Herein, we have developed a highly sensitive functionally integrated top–down proteomics method for the comprehensive analysis of proteoforms from single cells. We applied this method to single muscle fibers (SMFs) to resolve their heterogeneous functional and proteomic properties at the single-cell level. Notably, we have detected single-cell heterogeneity in large proteoforms (>200 kDa) from the SMFs. Using SMFs obtained from three functionally distinct muscles, we found fiber-to-fiber heterogeneity among the sarcomeric proteoforms which can be related to the functional heterogeneity. Importantly, we detected multiple isoforms of myosin heavy chain (~223 kDa), a motor protein that drives muscle contraction, with high reproducibility to enable the classification of individual fiber types. This study reveals single muscle cell heterogeneity in large proteoforms and establishes a direct relationship between sarcomeric proteoforms and muscle fiber types, highlighting the potential of top–down proteomics for uncovering the molecular underpinnings of cell-to-cell variation in complex systems.
National Acad Sciences