US Patent 7,442,773. Universal peptide-binding scaffolds and protein chips. Inventors: Huimin Zhao; Olga Esteban. Assignee: The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois
The scaffold is used to bind a target, which can be a peptide or peptides of interest , or peptides representing the entire proteome. The target can be protein fragments prepared by enzymatic digestion of the whole proteome or N- or C-terminal short sequences exposed by chemical denaturation of the entire proteome.
US Patent 7,442,556. Microfluidic-based electrospray source for analytical devices with a rotary fluid flow channel for sample preparation. Inventors: Ian Manger; Cunsheng Hao; Marc Unger. Assignee: Fluidigm
Provided are microfluidic devices and methods for using the devices. The device comprises a first elastic layer, a fluid flow channel within the elastic layer, and a means for providing a fluid sample from the fluid flow channel to an analytical device. An analytical apparatus comprising such a microfluidic device and an analytical device is also provided.
US Patent 7,439,337. Three-phase partitioning method for purifying a protein. Inventor: William Ward. Assignee: Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey
Invention is a kit and method for purifying a protein of interest. The kit consists of a solution of ammonium sulfate containing an indicator dye and a solution of tertiary butanol and isopropanol at a ratio of 3:7. The protein of interest is mixed with the solutions. The mixture is then separated to obtain a layer containing the protein of interest. The layer containing the protein is collected.
US Patent 7,438,856. Microfluidic devices and methods. Inventors: Paul Jedrzejewski, Steffen Nock; Peter Wagner; Pierre Indermuhle; Frank Zaugg. Assignee: Zyomyx
Invention pertains to microfluidic devices. In one embodiment, “a microanalysis chip comprises a body having at least one transfer-separation channel with a channel bottom that has a bottom opening,” according to the abstract. “The transfer-separation channel terminates in a discharge aperture.”
US Patent 7,435,951. Ion source sample plate illumination system. Inventors: Jean-Luc Truche; Gregor Overney; William Fisher; Richard Tella. Assignee: Agilent Technologies
Provided is a mass spectrometry system ion source containing a sample plate and an illumination device configured to produce a light beam that contacts the sample plate surface “to define a grazing angle between the light beam and the sample plate surface,” according to the abstract. Methods and MS systems employing the ion source are provided.
US Patent 7,435,385. Label-free high-throughput optical technique for detecting biomolecular interactions. Inventors: Bo Lin; Peter Li. Assignee: SRU Biosystems
Provided are methods and compositions for the detection of biomolecular interactions. Labels are not required and the methods can be done in a high-throughput manner, according to the abstract. Provided also are optical devices useful as narrow band filters.
US Patent 7,429,727. Method, apparatus, and program product for quickly selecting complex molecules from a database of molecules. Inventor: Marshall Bern. Assignee: Palo Alto Research Center
The invention relates to the analysis of dissociation spectrum data including spectral peaks representing fragments of a parent ion. The parent ion includes molecular subunits connected at cleavage sites. The technology described accesses the dissociation spectrum data, determining a reference mass of one of the fragments “where at least one of the molecular subunits in the fragment is known,” according to the abstract. The invention selects a candidate parent ion description from a database of molecule descriptions “where a computed ion mass of the candidate parent ion description matches the reference mass and scores the candidate parent ion description,” the inventor said in the abstract.