Biomarker Discovery
Top down or bottom up?
In the past, researchers using mass spectrometry to search for biomarkers have been forced to select a single approach. Some scientists have adopted a top-down profiling strategy, such as the ProteinChip® SELDI system, focusing on the analysis of intact proteins using a high-sensitivity instrument. Others have utilized a bottom-up approach to profiling, first digesting the proteins then profiling and identifying the fragments using a high-resolution instrument. While there are strengths to each of these approaches, neither has produced large numbers of markers approved by the FDA.
A successful biomarker discovery program requires that the limitations of the chosen approach be overcome, whether that approach be top-down or bottom-up. In the case of the top-down approach, the lack of identification often leaves researchers with a potentially robust marker but without a clear-cut plan for the next step in the characterization of the protein. Bottom-up researchers, due to low sample throughput, are left with a large number of identified possible biomarkers, but are unable to validate their results using larger studies.
The Lucid Proteomics System, the result of the collaborative effort between Bio-Rad Laboratories and Bruker Daltonics, provides the best of both worlds through coupling chromatographic ProteinChip® SELDI arrays with high resolution, high performance flex series MS/MS instruments. This unique approach can simplify and accelerate many research, clinical, and applied proteomic biomarker discovery and development programs.
Core Components
Bio-Rad ProteinChip arrays
For sample partitioning, concentration, and cleanup
The ProteinChip arrays play a key role in the Lucid Proteomics System. The chromatographic nature of the surface-enhanced laser desorption/ionization (SELDI) surface allows direct analysis of complex biological samples across a broad mass range. It does so in a robust, reproducible manner to quickly deliver protein profiles for biomarker discovery.
Bruker mass spectrometers
For high-performance sample analysis
A system approach as advanced as the Lucid Proteomics System deserves an advanced mass spectrometer. The ultrafleXtreme™ is capable of 1 kHz speed in both TOF and TOF/TOF modes, providing high performance and extreme flexibility. The Lucid Proteomics System is also compatible with autoflex™ and ultraflex™ TOF and TOF/TOF models.
Lucid™ Proteomics Software
Sample tracking, data collection, and data analysis within a single software application
The Lucid proteomics software is an integral component of the Lucid Proteomics System, guiding you from sample tracking and high-throughput data acquisition through the analysis of biomarker candidates. Features include virtual notebooks, multiple modes of spectral visualization, and both univariate and multivariate statistical tools. Built-in system qualification analysis tools track and ensure instrument reliability over time.
