Analyzing peptides and proteins by mass spectrometry: principles and applications in proteomics

Abstract

The study of proteins has been a key element in biomedicine and biotechnology because of their important role in cell functions or enzymatic activity. Cells are the basic unit of living organisms, which are governed by a vast range of chemical reactions. These chemical reactions must be highly regulated in order to achieve homeostasis. Proteins are polymeric molecules that have taken on the evolutionary process the role, along with other factors, of control these chemical reactions. Learning how proteins interact and control their up and down regulations can teach us how living cells regulate their functions, as well as the cause of certain anomalies that occur in different diseases where proteins are involved. Mass spectrometry (MS) is an analytical widely used technique to study the protein content inside the cells as a biomarker point, which describes dysfunctions in diseases and increases knowledge of how proteins are working. All the methodologies involved in these descriptions are integrated in the field called Proteomics.