NEW AUTOMATED SOFTWARE 'INTELLIGENTLY' IDENTIFIES PROTEINS

Shimadzu Biotech launches INTELLIMARQUE™ at ASMS

9 May 2002. Shimadzu Biotech's new software INTELLIMARQUE™ gives drug discovery researchers added confidence when identifying proteins through fully automated peptide mass fingerprinting and peptide fragmentation. INTELLIMARQUE™ is unique due to its automated data-dependent seamless PSD and subsequent second database searching to confirm protein identity. Furthermore, ions that do not match in the initial peptide mass fingerprint are also subjected to seamless PSD and analysed to provide information on minor components in a proteomics sample.

According to Dr. Chris Sutton, Global MALDI Business Manager of Shimadzu Biotech, "INTELLIMARQUE™ takes the AXIMA mass spectrometers to a new level of intuitive data generation and processing, essential in high throughput proteomics."

The automated nature of this process gives AXIMA™ MALDI mass spectrometers unparalleled throughput for fully automated peptide mass fingerprinting, including the location of sweet spots and laser power control to optimise the data. Automated Mascot™ (Matrix Science) database searching removes known contaminants and creates a filtered mass list from the peptide mass fingerprinting.

Taking full advantage of the capabilities of the AXIMA™ MALDI mass spectrometers, INTELLIMARQUE™ uses the database search result to define which peptide signals should be subject to fragmentation for further characterisation. Peptides that do not correspond to the expected sequence are automatically re-analysed, allowing less abundant proteins to be identified. The results are compiled into an easy to analyse report and scientists can focus upon planning further development, rather than having to spend time looking through databases themselves.

Dr. Andrew Gooley, Chief Scientific Officer of Proteome Systems Limited, says, "We work exclusively in the field of proteomics and have used seven AXIMA™ instruments over the past year to facilitate our discovery projects. Instead of having to take each piece of data to the search engine, INTELLIMARQUE ™ will enable our discovery scientists to determine within minutes whether the marker is significant or not. The beauty is that it does this in an intelligent way. It is designed to take 384 samples in one go and you can just walk away once you have loaded it into the system."

Andrew continues, "This is a fundamental breakthrough and our scientists will love it as they no longer need to spend hours and hours in front of the instruments and they are free to spend their valuable time looking at the statistical significance of the data. High throughput protein identification is now demanding this high level of automation and it will allow biologists to do much more data and trend analysis. We simply don't have seven people available to spend a long time sitting in front of these machines."

- ends -

For more information, please contact:

Shimadzu Biotech
Tetsuo Ichikawa, Chairman
Tel: 81-75-823-1148
Fax: 81-75-823-1364
email: tichi@shimadzu.co.jp

Chris Sutton, Business Manager
Fax: +44 (0)161 888 4402 ext 228
Tel: +44 (0)161 888 4400
email: chris.sutton@kratos.co.uk
Website: http://www.shimadzu-biotech.net

For press information, please contact:

HCC De Facto Group plc
Jacqui Dyson, Account Manager
Tel: +44 (0)20 7496 3300
Fax: +44 (0)20 7496 3355
email: j.dyson@hccdefacto.com