Biological mass spectrometry (MS) encompasses a range of methods for characterizing proteins and other biomolecules. MS is uniquely powerful for the structural analysis of endogenous protein complexes, which are often heterogeneous, poorly abundant, and refractive to characterization by other methods. Here, we focus on how biological MS can contribute to the study of endogenous protein complexes, which we define as complexes expressed in the physiological host and purified intact, as opposed to reconstituted complexes assembled from heterologously expressed components. Biological MS can yield information on complex stoichiometry, heterogeneity, topology, stability, activity, modes of regulation, and even structural dynamics. We begin with a review of methods for isolating endogenous complexes. We then describe the various biological MS approaches, focusing on the type of information that each method yields. We end with future directions and challenges for these MS-based methods.

中文翻译：

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用生物质谱法表征内源性蛋白质复合物

生物质谱 (MS) 包括一系列用于表征蛋白质和其他生物分子的方法。MS 对内源性蛋白质复合物的结构分析具有独特的强大功能，这些复合物通常是异质的、丰度不足的，并且难以通过其他方法进行表征。在这里，我们专注于生物 MS 如何有助于内源性蛋白质复合物的研究，我们将其定义为在生理宿主中表达并完整纯化的复合物，而不是由异源表达成分组装而成的重组复合物。生物 MS 可以产生有关复杂化学计量、异质性、拓扑、稳定性、活性、调节模式甚至结构动力学的信息。我们首先回顾了分离内源性复合物的方法。然后我们描述了各种生物 MS 方法，关注每种方法产生的信息类型。我们以这些基于 MS 的方法的未来方向和挑战结束。