Detection and Quantification of Novel C‐terminal TDP‐43 Fragments in ALS‐TDP

Feneberg, Emily; Charles, Philip D.; Finelli, Matt�a J.; Scott, Connor; Kessler, Benedikt M.; Fischer, Roman; Ansorge, Olaf; Gray, Elizabeth; Talbot, Kevin; Turner, Martin R.

Abstract

The pathological hallmark of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is the presence of cytoplasmic inclusions, containing C‐terminal fragments of the protein TDP‐43. Here, we tested the hypothesis that highly sensitive mass spectrometry with parallel reaction monitoring (MS‐PRM) can generate a high‐resolution map of pathological TDP‐43 peptide ratios to form the basis for quantitation of abnormal C‐terminal TDP‐43 fragment enrichment.

Human cortex and spinal cord, microscopically staged for the presence of phosphoTDP‐43, p‐tau, alpha‐synuclein and beta‐amyloid pathology, were biochemically fractionated and analysed by immunoblot and MS for detection of full‐length and truncated (disease‐specific) TDP‐43 peptides. This informed synthesis of heavy isotope‐labelled peptides for absolute quantification of TDP‐43 by MS‐PRM across 16 ALS, 8 Parkinson’s and 8 Alzheimer’s disease and 8 aged control cases.

We confirmed by immunoblot the previously described enrichment of pathological C‐terminal fragments in ALS‐TDP urea fractions. Subsequent MS analysis resolved specific TDP‐43 N‐ and C‐terminal peptides, including a novel N‐terminal truncation site‐specific peptide. Absolute quantification of peptides by MS‐PRM showed an increased C:N‐terminal TDP‐43 peptide ratio in ALS‐TDP brain compared to normal and disease controls. A C:N‐terminal ratio >1.5 discriminated ALS from controls with a sensitivity of 100% (CI 79.6‐100) and specificity of 100% (CI 68‐100), and from Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease with a sensitivity of 93% (CI 70‐100) and specificity of 100% (CI 68‐100). N‐terminal truncation site‐specific peptides were increased in ALS in line with C‐terminal fragment enrichment, but were also found in a proportion of Alzheimer cases with normal C:N‐terminal ratio but coexistent TDP‐43 pathology.

In conclusion this is a novel, sensitive and specific method to quantify the enrichment of pathological TDP‐43 fragments in human brain, which could form the basis for an antibody‐free assay. Our methodology has the potential to help clarify if specific pathological TDP‐43 peptide signatures are associated with primary or secondary TDP‐43 proteinopathies.

Citation

Feneberg, E., Charles, P. D., Finelli, M. J., Scott, C., Kessler, B. M., Fischer, R., …Turner, M. R. (2021). Detection and Quantification of Novel C‐terminal TDP‐43 Fragments in ALS‐TDP. Brain Pathology, 31(4), Article e12923. https://doi.org/10.1111/bpa.12923

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Dec 7, 2020
• Online Publication Date: Jan 29, 2021
• Publication Date: Jul 1, 2021
• Deposit Date: Dec 15, 2020
• Publicly Available Date: Jan 30, 2022
• Journal: Brain Pathology
• Print ISSN: 1015-6305
• Electronic ISSN: 1750-3639
• Publisher: Wiley
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 31
• Issue: 4
• Article Number: e12923
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/bpa.12923
• Keywords: Pathology and Forensic Medicine; General Neuroscience; Clinical Neurology
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/5148474
• Publisher URL: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/bpa.12923