Applied Biosystems/MDS SCIEX Launches Proteomics Tools for Biomarker Research
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Applied Biosystems, an Applera Corporation business, and its joint venture partner, Sciex, a division of MDS Inc.’s Analytical Technologies business, have announced an instrument system and software designed to assist the growing number of life scientists involved in biomarker research.
An updated release of the Applied Biosystems/MDS SCIEX 4800 MALDI TOF/TOF™ mass spectrometer and enhancements to ProteinPilot™ software, which augments the performance of the 4800 Plus, are expected to help scientists gain deeper quantitative insight into the study of proteomics.
Earlier versions of some of these products are helping translational medicine researchers at Cornell University, USA, to complete a biomarker study of Alzheimer's disease. Using proteomics products from Applied Biosystems/MDS SCIEX, the study identified 23 biomarker candidates that were associated with the presence of Alzheimer's disease and may provide links to the pathological mechanisms of the disease.
"We set out to better diagnose Alzheimer's disease, and the Applied Biosystems/MDS SCIEX joint venture provided powerful proteomics tools to help identify the biomarker candidates from cerebrospinal fluid," said Kelvin Lee, a Cornell professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering.
"Our research uncovered new candidate biomarkers as a first step. The next step in biomarker research is to validate what we found as relevant, so it may someday translate into a real advancement in the medical treatment of Alzheimer's disease,” Lee continued.
The new proteomics tools from Applied Biosystems/MDS SCIEX joint venture include:
The 4800 Plus MALDI TOF/TOF™ Analyzer – This system is a proteomics analyser that is designed to identify thousands of proteins in a biological sample. The enhancements from the previous version of the system provide an improved platform to better support the larger sample studies that proteomics researchers are moving towards, especially for biomarker discovery.
New version of ProteinPilot™ Software – ProteinPilot software is designed to maximise the information that can be obtained from the combination of the 4800 Plus and Applied Biosystems iTRAQ® reagents. It can deliver accurate protein detection, easy manageability and support for quantitation.
These latest tools are designed to be compatible with the future commercial release of the 8-plex version of Applied Biosystems iTRAQ reagents, a labelling chemistry allowing scientists and biologists to quantitatively compare proteins between samples.
The 8-plex version of these reagents is expected to increase the number of samples that can be compared simultaneously, providing higher throughput and greater statistical confidence in research results.
“Biomarker research has the potential to change the face of healthcare,” said Laura Lauman, president for Applied Biosystems’ proteomics and small molecule division. “The latest enhancements of our portfolio provide powerful tools that deliver higher throughput for analysing more samples and identifying higher quality biomarker candidates.”
The Applied Biosystems/MDS SCIEX Instruments joint venture, which has existed for the past 20 years between Applied Biosystems and MDS Inc., continues to expand its broad portfolio of mass spectrometry-based technologies and systems that enable advancements in research laboratories in biotechnology, biomedical and pharmaceutical fields.
“Sciex and Applied Biosystems are playing a leadership role in enabling more advanced research by our development of these innovative and reliable tools in the growing area of biomarker research,” said Andy Boorn, president for MDS Analytical Technologies. “We are committed to delivering the right combination of instruments and software to help move the biomarker research forward by facilitating the integration of the scientists’ efforts.”
