Protein Chip Technology
While technological innovations have enabled the analysis of genetic material in miniaturized test formats, the more delicate nature of protein structures has hindered the development of such devices for the analysis of proteins.
Nevertheless, protein microarrays making use of new developments in protein engineering and detection physics have recently begun to emerge. The basic construction of such protein chips has some similarities to DNA chips, such as the use of a glass or plastic surface dotted with an array of molecules. These molecules can be DNA or antibodies that are designed to capture proteins. The implementation of new surface chemistries allows the immobilization of defined quantities of proteins on each spot, while retaining some activity of the protein. With fluorescent markers or other methods of detection revealing the spots that have captured these proteins, protein microarrays are being used as powerful tools in high-throughput proteomics and drug discovery.
Currently, the major focus of protein-chip technology understands molecular pathways that in turn lead to useful information for drug discovery and molecular diagnostic applications.
The ProteinChip system includes arrays and reagents consumed in the process, the chip reader, software to analyze results, and a proprietary database to enable comparisons between phenomic and genomic data. Known proteins are analyzed using functional assays that are on the chip. For example, chip surfaces can contain enzymes, receptor proteins, or antibodies that enable researchers to conduct protein-protein interaction studies, ligand binding studies, or immunoassays. With state-of-the-art ion optic and laser optic technologies, the ProteinChip system detects proteins ranging from small peptides of less than 1000 Da up to proteins of 300 kDa and calculates the mass based on time-of-flight (TOF).
An example of the advantages that the ProteinChip offers can be seen in the discovery of prostate cancer biomarkers. With ProteinChip technology, it is possible to discriminate between benign prostatic hypertrophy with bound prostate-specific antigens (PSA) and cancer of the prostate with free PSA. In addition to having similar advantages over affinity LC-MS, the ProteinChip is a nonexpert, versatile benchtop system and is automated for high-throughput compatibility.
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