Thermo Fisher Scientific announces breakthrough workflow for metabolomics research

Published: 28-Jun-2011

A new generation of application software with cutting-edge Orbitrap LC-MS technology


Thermo Fisher Scientific has announced a breakthrough workflow to overcome key analytical and informatics challenges in metabolomics. The workflow integrates new application software -- Thermo Scientific SIEVE 2.0 differential expression analysis and Mass Frontier 7.0 structural elucidation software -- with powerful new Thermo Scientific high resolution accurate mass (HRAM) instruments: the Q Exactive high performance benchtop quadrupole-Orbitrap LC-MS/MS and the Orbitrap Elite hybrid mass spectrometer. The revolutionary new products accelerate even the most complex metabolomics studies.

‘Progress in metabolomics has been severely impeded by data-processing bottlenecks,’ said Dr Mark Sanders, director of the demonstration and application laboratories of Thermo Fisher Scientific in North America. ‘The new capability in SIEVE 2.0 software eliminates the most significant bottlenecks in current metabolomics data-processing, enabling scientists to find the most promising putative biomarkers quickly.’

SIEVE software is an automated solution for label-free, semi-quantitative differential expression analysis of proteins, peptides and metabolites. Using SIEVE software to pre-filter the high-quality accurate mass data generated by Thermo Scientific mass spectrometers greatly reduces the number of compounds that need to be identified, increasing the throughput of complex biomarker discovery experiments significantly. SIEVE software is expanded to address each of the most time-consuming challenges in metabolomics.

The new, advanced features have been rigorously tested by scientists with years of experience in the field of metabolomics:

  • Advanced background subtraction removes chemical noise, eliminating false positives and increasing confidence in results.
  • Automated spectral interpretation simplifies the data obtained from LC-MS experiments.
  • Streamlined data analyses and interpretation facilitate identification of the most promising putative components.
  • New statistical and visualisation tools speed-up the analysis of differentially expressed components.

Mass Frontier software offers an MSn spectral data interpretation solution for identifying challenging differentially expressed components in metabolomics studies. The software includes many innovative features, including comprehensive spectral data and fragmentation-mechanism knowledge management, that aid in confident structural elucidation.

Powerful new Q Exactive benchtop LC-MS and Orbitrap Elite hybrid mass spectrometers with HRAM capability provide the high level of resolution needed to fully resolve the numerous compounds found in biological matrices and the exceptional mass accuracy needed to unambiguously identify compounds. These systems offer increased sensitivity and dynamic range for the detection of very low abundance metabolites in complex samples.

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