Analysis of protein phosphorylation on a proteome‐scale

Phosphorylation, the most intensively studied and common PTM on proteins, is a complex biological phenomenon. Its complexity manifests itself in the large numbers of proteins that attach it, remove it and recognise it as a protein code. Since the first report of protein phosphorylation on vitellin 100 years ago, a wide variety of biochemical and analytical chemical approaches have been developed to enrich and detect protein phosphorylation. The last 5 years have witnessed a renaissance in methodologies capable of characterising protein phosphorylation on a proteome‐scale. These technological advances have allowed identification of hundreds to thousands of phosphorylation sites in a proteome and have resulted in a profound paradigm shift. For the first time, using quantitative MS, the topology and significance of global phosphorylation networks may be investigated, marking a new era of cell signalling research. This review addresses recent technological advances in the purification of phosphorylated proteins and peptides and current MS‐based strategies used to qualitatively and quantitatively probe these enriched phosphoproteomes. In addition, we review the application of complementary array‐based technologies to derive signalling networks from kinase–substrate interactions and discuss future challenges in the field.