Proteomics is the large-scale study of proteins. Proteins are vital parts of living organisms, with many functions such as the formation of structural fibers of muscle tissue, enzymatic digestion of food, or synthesis and replication of DNA. In addition, other kinds of proteins include antibodies that protect an organism from infection, and hormones that send important signals throughout the body.
Robotic preparation of MALDI mass spectrometry samples on a sample carrier
LCQ Mass Spectrometer used in mass spectrometry.
The proteome is the entire set of proteins that is, or can be, expressed by a genome, cell, tissue, or organism at a certain time. It is the set of expressed proteins in a given type of cell or organism, at a given time, under defined conditions. Proteomics is the study of the proteome.
The proteome can be used to determine the presence of different types of cancers.
This image shows a two-dimensional gel with color-coded proteins. This is a way to visualize proteins based on their mass and isoelectric point.
An Orbitrap mass spectrometer commonly used in proteomics