SCIEX, Pressure BioSciences Partner

SCIEX has announced an exclusive co-marketing agreement with Pressure BioSciences, Inc., a worldwide leader in the development and sale of high pressure-based sample preparation systems to the life sciences research market. This relationship will uniquely position SCIEX to address a major challenge in complex sample preparation by marketing a complete solution to increase the depth, breadth, and reproducibility of protein extraction, digestion and quantitation in all tissue types, including challenging samples like tumors. Under this Agreement, PBI and SCIEX will promote pressure cycling technology (PCT) sample preparation systems such as PCT-HD (PCT High Definition) with SWATH® Acquisition based next-generation proteomics, TripleTOF® Systems, QTRAP® Systems, and Triple Quad Systems. This focus on improved sample preparation, a crucial step performed in research laboratories worldwide, will enable scientists to extract more proteins reproducibly from complex sample types, potentially yielding superior biological insights and discoveries.

PCT Sample Preparation Systems enable faster, automated, less cumbersome, and higher quality extraction, homogenization, and digestion of proteins from tissue samples by utilizing controlled cycles of pressure to break apart the samples. This results in faster and improved sample processing, and a higher quality of results. When combined with SWATH® Acquisition, the "missing data problem" is vastly improved, as PCT-based sample preparation increases the reproducibility and quantitative accuracy of label-free proteomics, greatly outperforming classic “shotgun” methods that measure an incomplete set of proteins that are difficult to reproduce. Thus, SWATH® Acquisition with PCT sample preparation makes reproducible proteome research feasible across the enormous diversity of complex biological samples.

PCT-HD was developed by PBI scientists and engineers in collaboration with Professor Ruedi Aebersold and Dr. Tiannan Guo of the Institute of Molecular Systems Biology, ETH Zurich, and the University of Zurich, in Switzerland. Drs. Aebersold and Guo combined PCT-HD sample preparation with SCIEX’s SWATH-Mass Spectrometry – naming the resulting method “PCT-SWATH”. This unique protocol can yield proteome analysis results within 12 hours from the start of processing tissue, much faster than current methods.

“By addressing the significant challenges inherent in complex sample preparation to reproducibly analyze thousands of proteins in hundreds of samples, PCT-SWATH accelerates proteomics research in biologically and clinically-relevant contexts,” states Dr. Aebersold. “This should increase the chance for biomarker discovery, potentially leading to significant improvements in healthcare, including personalized medicine.”

“Advancing precision medicine through the ability to reproducibly quantitate thousands of proteins in large clinical sample cohorts is of the utmost importance to both academic and clinical research labs,” said Mark Cafazzo, Director of Academic and Clinical Research Business at SCIEX. “The combination of PCT sample preparation with SWATH Acquisition delivers a powerful method to industrialize proteomics research, including the most complex and challenging biospecimens. By partnering with PBI and adding the PCT technology to SCIEX next-generation proteomic solutions, we help scientists address the sample preparation challenges they face every day, especially when working with difficult tissue samples.”

Mr. Cafazzo continued: “The net result is more comprehensive protein quantitation from complex samples, increased productivity and higher quality results. This is an exciting step forward for the field of proteomics, one that offers the potential to make a great and lasting impact on the quality of human life.”

“Bringing the PCT platform into the research laboratory enables scientists to efficiently and reproducibly break apart tissue samples and greatly accelerate their processing,” said Richard T. Schumacher, President and CEO of PBI. “By combining these methods with SCIEX’s expertise and successful history in mass spectrometry system solutions, clinical researchers will be equipped to make major leaps forward in proteomic analysis, over the current limitations of traditional methods.”

While mass spectrometry (MS) is already the gold standard tool for proteomic analysis, advanced sample preparation techniques like the PCT platform, which decrease starting material requirements while increasing the quality of results, will continue to expand the use of mass spectrometry in clinical research. This agreement between SCIEX and PBI is expected to significantly expand the footprint of MS-based quantitation workflows in clinical research settings worldwide.

Learn more about SCIEX Proteomics Solutions and Pressure BioSciences PCT-SWATH