NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) – Thermo Fisher Scientific said today that it will collaborate with the Molecular Therapeutics Research Group at the School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, to analyze peptides within amphibian venom.
The research group is using Thermo Fisher’s LTQ Orbitrap XL mass spectrometer on a trial basis for complex peptide identification and for generating data needed for the de novo sequencing of peptides. The group is currently working on the isolation, structural characterization, and functional evaluation of novel peptides extracted from amphibian, snake, and arthropod venoms.
The research, conducted by Chris Shaw and colleagues, is aimed at discovering novel peptide drug discovery leads.
Shaw said in a statement that the Orbitrap technology “has enabled us to determine that the synthetic replicate produced in analysis is highly accurate in terms of molecular characterization identical to the natural compound.” He claimed this is the first time a proteomics instrument has been able to achieve this feat, which means that “we can avoid the possibility of working for years on fruitless research.”