Scientists had been warning us

As predicted by the scientific community, the COVID-19 pandemic is hitting the world with full force. The speed at which the infection spreads is absolutely terrifying. However, learning from past pandemics, the authorities have taken measures to slow the progression of the disease in an attempt to prevent a shortage of medical resources. While some countries reacted fast, others waited a tad too long before taking the appropriate measures and are now facing an unprecedented health crisis. In any cases, the result of this pandemic is a massive disruption in the personal and professional activities of a majority of the world's population. 

Controls, controls, controls!

Over the last two decades, extensive technological and methodological advances have led to the widespread use of mass spectrometry (MS)-based bottom-up proteomics, which involves the digestion of proteins into peptides followed by identification and quantification of the resulting peptides by LC-MS.  MS based analysis is the method of choice for large-scale exploration of proteomes in biological systems and has significantly contributed to the comprehension of a variety of biological processes. In the field of clinical research, quantitative MS has been an integral part of numerous biomarker discovery and evaluation studies¹.

Learn how to optimize your sample preparation technique for mass spectrometry

What do you mean "I cannot just put the sample in the machine.."? 

Mass spectrometry is a tricky science. It is incredibly powerful and can bring a lot of added value to most research projects. However, in order to benefit from the full potential of the analysis, one has to be very careful during the sample preparation stage of the experiment. Because no, you cannot just put the sample in the machine in any way! Such a sophisticated machine needs that your sample is prepared the right way, with the right tools and the right techniques. Only then will you get meaningful results. And because we are all about helping people, we will share our secrets to you. So, here are some tips for sample preparation for mass spectrometry!