Differentiation of CC vs CXC Chemokine Dimers with GAG Octasaccharide Binding Partners: An Ion Mobility Mass Spectrometry Approach

Chemokines, 8 kDa proteins implicated in leukocyte migration via oligomerization, bind to glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) during the inflammation response as a means to regulate chemokine migration. Structural characterization of chemokines non-covalently bound to GAGs provides physiologically meaningful data in regard to routine inmmunosurveillance and disease response. In order to analyze the structures resulting from the GAG:chemokine interaction, we employed ion mobility mass spectrometry (IMMS) to analyze monocyte chemoattractant protein‑1 (MCP‑1), a CC chemokine, and interleukin‑8 (IL‑8), a CXC chemokine, along with their individual interactions with GAG heparin octasaccharides. We show that MCP‑1 and IL‑8 are physiologically present as a dimer, with MCP‑1 having two variants of its dimeric form and IL‑8 having only one. We also show that the MCP‑1 dimer adopts two conformations, one extended and one compact, when bound to a dodecasulfated heparin octasaccharide. Binding of MCP‑1 to heparin octasaccharide isomers of varying sulfation patterns results in similar arrival time distribution values, which suggests minimal distinguishing features among the resultant complexes. Additionally, tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) showed that the binding of MCP‑1 to a heparin octasaccharide has different dissociation patterns when compared with the corresponding IL‑8 bound dimer. Overall, IMMS and MS/MS were used to better define the structural tendencies and differences associated with CC and CXC dimers when associated with GAG octasaccharides