Utilising acoustic mist ionisation mass spectrometry to identify redox cycling compounds in high throughput screening outputs

Rapid triage of compounds acting via undesired mechanisms is a crucial stage in a high-throughput screening (HTS) cascade to ensure time and resource is efficiently assigned to the most propitious hits. Redox cycling compounds (RCCs) produce reactive oxygen species, such as hydrogen peroxide, which can impair protein function and appear as hits against liable targets. Direct measurement of tris(2-carboxyethyl)phosphine (TCEP) oxidation has been demonstrated as a sensitive and accurate measure of redox cycling [1]. However, the current nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) based detection method is not compatible with the throughput required for triage of a HTS campaign. Here we employ Acoustic Mist Ionisation Mass Spectrometry (AMI-MS) [2] to rapidly measure oxidation of TCEP and accurately identify redox cyclers in a high throughput manner.