One-Pot O -Glycan Release and Permethylation (OPORP) Enables Rapid and Quantitative O -Glycan Analysis from Low-Input Samples

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Authors: Shuhong Guo, Nafisa Tursumamat, Shengyang Liu, Qiannan Liu, Zhenyu WANG, Huili Lu, Ying Han, Piliang Hao, Jianwei Zhu, Juan Wei
Cited by: 2
References: 47

Abstract

O -glycosylation, an exceptionally complex and heterogeneous post-translational modification, plays pivotal roles in diverse biological and pathological processes, and is a key regulator of biopharmaceutical quality and efficacy. However, the vast structural diversity and the absence of a universal O -glycosidase make simple and reproducible O -glycan analysis a long-standing challenge, especially for low-input samples. Current O -glycan preparation workflows typically require microgram-level starting protein material and involve laborious derivatization and purification steps. Moreover, many O -glycan release methods are prone to “peeling” reactions, leading to glycan degradation and compromised quantitative accuracy. Here, we present a highly efficient One-Pot strategy for simultaneous O -glycan Release and Permethylation, termed OPORP, yielding derivatized glycans compatible with both matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS) and widely available reversed-phase liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (RPLC-MS). Integrated MALDI-MS, OPORP enables comprehensive O -glycan profiling from nanogram-level protein samples within 2 h. Notably, major O -glycans could be detected from as low as 1 ng of fetuin input and as few as 1,000 MCF-7 cells using RPLC-MS. The method also provides low inter- and intra-assay variability (CV < 20%) and good quantitative linearity for low-input samples (R 2 ≥ 0.95). With robust quantitative performance, we reveal markedly distinct O -glycan profiles between darbepoetin alfa and a higher-potency novel analog with accuracy. Overall, the simple yet powerful OPORP strategy combines exceptional sensitivity, throughput, and robust quantification, establishing a new methodological benchmark for O -glycan analysis with broad applications.

Fields of Study & Subjects

Glycosylation and Glycoproteins Research Carbohydrate Chemistry and Synthesis Advanced Glycation End Products research

Publication details

Journal / source
Analytical Chemistry
Publisher
American Chemical Society (ACS)
Volume
98
Issue
10
Pages
7613–7622
Publication date
2 March 2026
Language
EN