Targeted Metabolomics on Rare Primary Cells

Summary

Here, we present a protocol to accurately and reliably measure metabolites in rare cell types. Technical improvements, including a modified sheath fluid for cell sorting and the generation of relevant blank samples, enable a comprehensive quantification of metabolites with an input of only 5000 cells per sample.

Abstract

Cellular function critically depends on metabolism, and the function of the underlying metabolic networks can be studied by measuring small molecule intermediates. However, obtaining accurate and reliable measurements of cellular metabolism, particularly in rare cell types like hematopoietic stem cells, has traditionally required pooling cells from multiple animals. A protocol now enables researchers to measure metabolites in rare cell types using only one mouse per sample while generating multiple replicates for more abundant cell types. This reduces the number of animals that are required for a given project. The protocol presented here involves several key differences over traditional metabolomics protocols, such as using 5 g/L NaCl as a sheath fluid, sorting directly into acetonitrile, and utilizing targeted quantification with rigorous use of internal standards, allowing for more accurate and comprehensive measurements of cellular metabolism. Despite the time required for the isolation of single cells, fluorescent staining, and sorting, the protocol can preserve differences among cell types and drug treatments to a large extent.

Introduction

Metabolism is an essential biological process that occurs in all living cells. Metabolic processes involve a vast network of biochemical reactions that are tightly regulated and interconnected, allowing cells to produce energy and synthesize essential biomolecules¹. To understand the function of metabolic networks, researchers measure the levels of small molecule intermediates within cells. These intermediates serve as important indicators of metabolic activity and can reveal critical insights into cellular function.

Mass spectrometry (MS) is the most popular choice for the specific detection of metabolites in comple....

Protocol

Breeding and husbandry of all mice used for this protocol were conducted in a conventional animal facility at the Max Planck Institute for Immunobiology and Epigenetics (MPI-IE) according to the regulations of the local authorities (Regierungspräsidium Freiburg). Mice were euthanized with CO₂ and cervical dislocation by FELASA B-trained personnel following guidelines and regulations approved by the animal welfare committee of the MPI-IE and the local authorities. No animal experimentation was performed, a.......

Discussion

The most critical steps for successful implementation of targeted metabolomics using this protocol are 1) a robust staining and gating strategy that will yield clean cell populations 2) precise handling of liquid volumes, 3) reproducible timing of all experimental steps, in particular all steps prior to metabolite extraction. Ideally, all samples belonging to one experiment should be processed and measured in one batch to minimize batch effects²². For larger experiments, we suggest collecting cell.......

Materials

Name	Company	Catalog Number	Comments
13C yeast extract	Isotopic Solutions	ISO-1
40 µm cell strainer	Corning	352340
Acetonitrile, LC-MS grade	VWR	83640.32
ACK lysis buffer	Gibco	104921	Alternatively: Lonza, Cat# BP10-548E
Adenosine diphosphate (ADP)	Sigma Aldrich	A2754
Adenosine monophosphate (AMP)	Sigma Aldrich	A1752
Adenosine triphosphate (ATP)	Sigma Aldrich	A2383
Ammonium Carbonate, HPLC grade	Fisher Scientific	A/3686/50
Atlantis Premier BEH Z-HILIC column (100 x 2.1 mm, 1.7 µm)	Waters	186009982
B220-A647	Invitrogen	103226
B220-PE/Cy7	BioLegend	103222	RRID:AB_313005
CD11b-PE/Cy7	BioLegend	101216	RRID:AB_312799
CD150-BV605	BioLegend	115927	RRID:AB_11204248
CD3-PE	Invitrogen	12-0031-83
CD48-BV421	BioLegend	103428	RRID:AB_2650894
CD4-PE/Cy7	BioLegend	100422	RRID:AB_2660860
CD8a-PE/Cy7	BioLegend	100722	RRID:AB_312761
cKit-PE	BioLegend	105808	RRID:AB_313217
Dynabeads Untouched Mouse CD4 Cells Kit	Invitrogen	11415D
FACSAria III	BD
Gr1-PE/Cy7	BioLegend	108416	RRID:AB_313381
Heat sealing foil	Neolab	Jul-18
Isoleucine	Sigma Aldrich	58880
JetStream ESI Source	Agilent	G1958B
Leucine	Sigma Aldrich	L8000
Medronic acid	Sigma Aldrich	M9508-1G
Methanol, LC-MS grade	Carl Roth	HN41.2
NaCl	Fluka	31434-1KG
PBS	Sigma Aldrich	D8537
Sca1-APC/Cy7	BioLegend	108126	RRID:AB_10645327
TER119-PE/Cy7	BioLegend	116221	RRID:AB_2137789
Triple Quadrupole Mass Spectrometer	Agilent	6495B
Twin.tec PCR plate 96 well LoBind skirted	Eppendorf	30129512
UHPLC Autosampler	Agilent	G7157B
UHPLC Column Thermostat	Agilent	G7116B
UHPLC Pump	Agilent	G7120A
UHPLC Sample Thermostat	Agilent	G4761A