MEMBER INFORMATION
Dr Francesca Galluzzi is a postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Bordeaux. Her BSc and MSc degree were in Science for Cultural Heritage analysis (University of Venice and Bologna). She earned her PhD in Chemical Science from the University of Bordeaux in 2021. The doctoral project was part of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie European Training Network TEMPERA, and it was focused on the development of new methodologies based on mass spectrometry for the analysis of proteinaceous compounds in different artistic materials. Her research interests include the characterisation of proteins collected at the trace level (following the bottom up and top-down approaches) and the investigation of chemical and structural modifications induced in proteins by processes of ageing and degradation (particularly cross-linking formations).
ABM CONFERENCES
Poster Presenter
Hydrogen deuterium exchange mass spectrometry to elucidate reticulations, interactions and conformational changes of proteins in tempera paintings
ABM MEMBER EVENTS
PUBLICATIONS + PROJECTS
Francesca Galluzzi, Stéphane Chaignepain, Julie Arslanoglu, Caroline Tokarski
Hydrogen deuterium exchange mass spectrometry to elucidate reticulations, interactions and conformational changes of proteins in tempera paintings
Little is known about structural alterations of proteins within the polymeric films of paints. For the first time, hydrogen‑deuterium exchange mass spectrometry (HDX-MS) was implemented to explore the conformational alterations of proteins resulting from their interaction with inorganic pigments within the early stages of the paint film formation. Intact protein analysis and bottom-up electrospray-ionisation mass spectrometry strategies combined with progressively increasing deuterium incubation times were used to compare the protein structures of the model protein hen egg-white lysozyme (HEWL) extracted from newly dried non-pigmented films and newly dried films made from a freshly made mixture of HEWL with lead white pigment (2PbCO3 Pb(OH)2). The action of other pigments was also investigated, expanding the HDX study with a global approach to paint models of HEWL mixed with zinc white (ZnO), cinnabar (HgS) and red lead (Pb3O4) pigments. The results show structural modifications of HEWL induced by the interaction with the pigment metal ions during the paint formulation after drying and prior to ageing. Both the charge distribution of HEWL proteoforms, its oxidation rate and its deuterium absorption rate, were influenced by the pigment type, providing the first insights into the correlation of pigment type/metal cation to specific chemistries related to protein stability.
Catherine Gilbert, Vaclav Krupicka, Francesca Galluzi, Aleksandra Popowich, Stéphane Claverol, Julie Arslanoglu, Caroline Tokarski
Species identification of ivory and bone museum objects using minimally invasive proteomics
Ivory is a highly prized material in many cultures since it can be carved into intricate designs and have a highly polished surface. Due to its popularity, the animals from which ivory can be sourced are under threat of extinction. Identification of ivory species is not only important for CITES compliance, it can also provide information about the context in which a work was created. Here, we have developed a minimally invasive workflow to remove minimal amounts of material from precious objects and, using high-resolution mass spectrometry–based proteomics, identified the taxonomy of ivory and bone objects from The Metropolitan Museum of Art collection dating from as early as 4000 B.C. We built a proteomic database of underrepresented species based on exemplars from the American Museum of Natural History, and proposed alternative data analysis workflows for samples containing inconsistently preserved organic material. This application demonstrates extensive ivory species identification using proteomics to unlock sequence uncertainties, e.g., Leu/Ile discrimination.