EdinOmics was established at the Centre for Engineering Biology (formerly Centre for Synthetic and Systems Biology, SynthSys) as a resource for high-end quantitative and qualitative proteomics and metabolomics research using state-of-the-art equipment. The facility applies analytical approaches on biological samples to probe cellular components (proteins or metabolites) to help researchers better understand the underlying mechanisms that lead to biologically observed phenotypes.
The facility is equipped with:
- A ThermoScientific high-resolution QExactive Orbitrap mass spectrometer for global proteomics analysis.
- An Agilent gas chromatogram (GC) coupled to a quadrupole time of flight (QToF) mass spectrometer with a dedicated in-line MultiPurpose Sampler (MPS) for liquid handling and sample preparation.
- An Agilent 6560a Ion Mobility (IM) - QToF mass spectrometer with electrospray ionisation (ESI) source that is coupled to ultra-high performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC).
- An Agilent 6560c IM - QToF mass spectrometer with ESI and matrix-assisted laser desorption ionisation (MALDI) sources coupled to UHPLC.
- An Agilent Bravo liquid handling platform with 96 pipette head for automated sample preparation.
- An Agilent Seahorse XF Pro analyser interfaced with Cytation 1 imager and software for high throughput real-time metabolic analysis of live cells.
These instruments provide the facility with the capacity to perform targeted, semi-targeted and untargeted analysis of complex protein and metabolite mixtures.
The Agilent MassHunter software tools (Profinder, Mass Profiler Professional, Unknowns analysis and SureMass), MetaboAnalyst and MS Dial are routinely used to probe and present data in an easy to understand format. The proteomics service makes use of Progenesis software (Non linear Dynamics) for quantitative analysis alongside Mascot database searching (Matrix Science) for protein identification.