The University of Toledo

Proteomics Core Lab - Introduction

PCL Introduction	Instrumentation
Services	Sample Submission
General Protocols	Forms & Pricing

Note:  For budgetary reasons, the UT Proteomics Core Laboratory has been temporarily closed.  We are hopeful that the lab will reopen in the future. If you would like to use the PCL when it reopens, please email joanne.gray@utoledo.edu, with the subject line, "Notify When PCL Reopens".

The "proteome" is the complete set of proteins in a cell, which includes information on their relative abundance, spatial distribution and modifications. Proteomics is a rapidly emerging set of technologies that are being used to identify proteins and map their interactions in a cellular context. Recent interest in proteomics has been fueled by the completion of multiple genome projects and ignited by the common need of biologists to rapidly and comprehensively evaluate complex samples of proteins on a global level. With the sequencing of genomes of many biological model organisms, the scope of proteomics has shifted from protein identification and characterization to analyses of protein structure, function and protein-protein interactions.
 
Mass spectrometry (MS) is the key component of proteomic technology. MS measures the molecular mass (Mr), an intrinsic property of an analyte (protein/peptide), with high degree of accuracy (>100 ppm), sensitivity (femtomole) and speed. These experimentally determined accurate masses (usually of peptides from a protein digest) are then used as constraints in a database query, which should result in the identifications of the protein.

Applications of mass spectrometry and proteomic technology in the field of biology are very broad. Proteomic approaches are most commonly used to:

1. characterize a purified protein
2. study the protein expression changes between two cell populations, which could reveal biomarkers and/or novel targets for therapy (normal vs. cancerous tissue; drug treated vs.,
   untreated, infected vs. uninfected, etc.)
3. establish subcellular proteomes (mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum, etc.)
4. identify interacting proteins
5. identify post-translational modifications such as acetylation or phosphorylation.

Proteomics Core Laboratory (PCL)
Status Inquiries: joanne.gray@utoledo.edu
Fax: 419-383-3251