Released on: February 26, 2008, 2:35 am

Press Release Author: Thermo Fisher Scientific - Mass Spectrometry

Industry: Chemicals

Press Release Summary: Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving
science, today announced that the company\'s award-winning LTQ Orbitrap linear ion
trap mass spectrometer was chosen by the Institut de Recherches Cliniques de
Montréal (IRCM) for use in a new proteomics research approach that could profoundly
impact the current understanding of the human proteome. The Thermo Scientific LTQ
Orbitrap will play a major role in IRCM\'s systematic analysis of human protein
interaction networks, which has significant implications in the prevention and
treatment of disease.


Press Release Body: Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving
science, today announced that the company\'s award-winning LTQ Orbitrap linear ion
trap mass spectrometer was chosen by the Institut de Recherches Cliniques de
Montréal (IRCM) for use in a new proteomics research approach that could profoundly
impact the current understanding of the human proteome. The Thermo Scientific LTQ
Orbitrap will play a major role in IRCM\'s systematic analysis of human protein
interaction networks, which has significant implications in the prevention and
treatment of disease.

IRCM, founded in 1967, is a non-profit organization devoted to studying the causes
of disease, developing new diagnostic procedures and discovering preventive and
therapeutic approaches that help to enhance quality of life.
A significant part of the organization\'s research focuses on proteomics - or the
study of the structure and function of proteins, which are responsible for the
physiology of living cells. The proteome of an organism is the set of proteins
encoded by its genome. Since most of the proteins found in the human body are still
uncharacterized, their function remains unknown and there is a need for a protein
\"road map.\"

Defining the maps of protein interactions that regulate cell growth, differentiation
and disease progression is the overall goal of the Human Proteotheque Initiative
(HuPI), a project conducted by Dr. Benoit Coulombe, his research team at IRCM and
his collaborators in various universities and research centers. These \"HuPI-Maps\"
will be made publicly available as an atlas describing some fundamental human
molecular networks. This atlas should become a valuable resource for scientists
interested in basic biological and biomedical research because enzymes and other
proteins carry most of the biological functions required for cell growth and
differentiation. Central to the HuPI project is its experimental platform, including
the Thermo Scientific LTQ Orbitrap mass spectrometer, which ultimately generates
maps of protein interaction networks.

This information potentially can lead to future ground-breaking discoveries of new
molecular tools for the prevention and treatment of disease. By characterizing
protein networks associated with a particular disease, scientists believe they can
produce multi-parameter descriptions needed to more realistically and reliably
address issues such as the cause, the diagnose and, eventually, the cure of this
disease. Critical to this procedure is definitive protein characterization, which is
only possible with the high-resolution, high-mass accuracy MS/MS performance offered
by the Thermo Scientific LTQ Orbitrap hybrid system.

\"What is most important is to develop a highly reliable and efficient discovery
pipeline that generates interaction maps that are both as complete and as accurate
as possible,\" Dr. Coulombe said. \"The specificity of our procedure to identify
functionally relevant interaction partners is spectacular. The LTQ Orbitrap has
definitely enabled us to make discoveries that have previously been impossible.\"

\"This is a great example of how Thermo Scientific instrumentation is being used in
critical research applications that have a real impact on human life,\" comments Iain
Mylchreest vice president and general manager, Life Sciences Mass Spectrometry,
Thermo Fisher. \"Thermo Fisher is proud to support the HuPI initiative as it is
extremely important and timely to the field of system biology.\"

For more information about the Thermo Scientific LTQ Orbitrap Discovery and LTQ
Orbitrap XL hybrid linear ion trap mass spectrometers, please call +1 800-532-4752,
e-mail analyze@thermo.com or visit www.thermo.com/ms

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Thermo Scientific is part of Thermo Fisher Scientific, the world leader in serving
science.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE: TMO) is the world leader in serving science,
enabling our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. With an
annual revenue rate of more than $9 billion, we employ 30,000 people and serve over
350,000 customers within pharmaceutical and biotech companies, hospitals and
clinical diagnostic labs, universities, research institutions and government
agencies, as well as environmental and industrial process control settings. Serving
customers through two premier brands, Thermo Scientific and Fisher Scientific, we
help solve analytical challenges from routine testing to complex research and
discovery. Thermo Scientific offers customers a complete range of high-end
analytical instruments as well as laboratory equipment, software, services,
consumables and reagents to enable integrated laboratory workflow solutions. Fisher
Scientific provides a complete portfolio of laboratory equipment, chemicals,
supplies and services used in healthcare, scientific research, safety and education.
Together, we offer the most convenient purchasing options to customers and
continuously advance our technologies to accelerate the pace of scientific
discovery, enhance value for customers and fuel growth for shareholders and
employees alike. Visit www.thermofisher.com.


Web Site: http://www.thermo.com/ms

Contact Details: For further press information please contact: Laura Browne, The
Scott Partnership, 1, Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire CW4 8AA,
United Kingdom Tel: + 44 1477 539 539 Fax: +44 1477 539540 E-mail:
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