NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) – Thermo Fisher Scientific and German diagnostics firm Immundiagnostik said today they are partnering to develop mass spectrometry-based assays for the qualitative and quantitative analysis of proteins and peptides.
A number of Thermo Fisher's liquid chromatography-triple quadrupole mass spectrometry systems will be used as part of the deal, including the firm's high-throughput Mass Spectrometric Immunoassay technology, its TSQ Vantage Triple Quadrupole mass spec for the quantitative analysis of small peptides, and the Orbitrap Elite instrument for measuring post-translational modifications.
The technologies will be combined with Immundiagnostik's ImmunoTube antibody technology for optimizing sample preparation and isolating low-level analytes to create new assays for diagnosing cardiovascular diseases and bone metabolism disorders, the partners said. The assays are being developed to selectively identify all molecular variations of peptides and proteins, with the ultimate goal of developing commercial assays for research use as well as for routine clinical analysis.
Immundiagnostik is providing a venue for demonstrating various Thermo Fisher technology applications as part of the deal, and will use its academic and clinical network to identify diagnostic parameters, validate novel LC-MS/MS products, and develop new assays for commercial launches.
Financial and other terms of the deal were not disclosed.