Agilent announces latest products at ASMS

Hits:2843   Date: 6/1/2006

Scientists rely on liquid chromatograph/ mass spectrometry (LC/MS) systems to identify, quantify and analyze compounds in applications such as food safety, environmental and forensics testing as well as more complex applications in the life sciences . The power of mass spectrometry has traditionally demanded specialized skills, and the instruments have required time-consuming calibration and maintenance. Agilent's multi-faceted product development strategy makes the power of mass spectrometry more accessible to a wider range of laboratories while transforming the workflows of the most complex analyses such as biomarker discovery and validation for disease research.

. The largest multi-platform launch in Agilent's history includes substantial improvements to "small molecule" LC/MS analysis (pesticides in food, hydrocarbon processing, forensics, pharmaceutical manufacturing QC, environmental) as well as "large molecule" analysis of proteins for life science research. The new Agilent portfolio also is particularly well-suited for "metabolomics" research which studies small molecules' roles in life sciences.

• On the small molecule side, Agilent's new family of 6100 Series Single Quadrupole LC/MS instruments have a 40 percent smaller footprint than predecessor instruments, begin at 20 percent less cost than the previous entry level MS and protect customers' investments in entry level instruments with a seamless upgrade path through three additional models to research grade instruments. These new instruments are designed to keep pace with the fast scanning speeds of Agilent's new 1200 Series LC portfolio.
• On the large molecule side, Agilent has announced two new sample preparation components to streamline the proteomics/biomarker workflow. The Multiple Affinity Removal System removes the seven most abundant proteins in human plasma, unmasking previously undetectable proteins that are potential biomarkers -- proteins whose presence can indicate a disease or potential response to therapy. Also ahead of mass spectrometry analysis in the proteomics workflow, the Agilent 3100 OFFGEL Fractionator separates proteins and peptides with unprecedented simplicity and resolution, enabling scientists to identify more proteins, peptides and potential biomarkers through LC/MS. Output is in liquid form, which is more compatible with MS analysis than competing techniques.
• To identify and characterize compounds in complex samples in applications such as protein biomarker detection, the 6510 quadrupole time-of-flight (Q-TOF) LC/MS sets a new standard for analytical performance through its tenfold increase in sensitivity, faster acquisition speed and better accuracy in MS mode than other instruments in its class.
• Agilent also introduced GeneSpring MS software, another key element of the diverse, highly integrated set of MS-based solutions for life science workflows. An extension of the popular Genespring GX system for gene expression analysis, GeneSpring MS provides a powerful informatics solution for discovery of protein and metabolite biomarkers through the analysis of MS data.

Agilent's expanding portfolio of LC/MS tools that work together across both small molecule and large molecule research workflows is engineered to set a new standard in price-performance, reliability and ease-of-use, transforming productivity in laboratories.

find out more in: http://www.agilent.com/about/newsroom/features/2006may30_asms.html