About Shimadzu

Shimadzu Corporation has developed a nanoflow high-performance liquid chromatograph* (product name: Prominence nano), which achieves the high degree of sensitivity for the analysis of biosamples that the life sciences field demands. This product was displayed at the combined 30th Annual Meeting of the Molecular Biology Society of Japan and 80th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Biochemical Society (BMB2007) held in Yokohama City from December 11th, 2007. It went on the market December 14th, 2007.

Combining this product with a mass spectrometer enhances analysis accuracy and reliability for ultra-trace levels of biogenic components, which are typical in proteome analysis, and demand is expected to be high in the life sciences market.

Background to the Product Development

In recent years, significant research related to the analysis of biomarkers has been conducted in drug discovery and disease diagnosis to determine the effectiveness, toxicity, and side effects of pharmaceuticals obtained through the analysis of biogenic components extracted from blood or tissue. Analysis methods combining a liquid chromatograph and mass spectrometer (LC-MS or LC-MALDI-TOF MS) are mainly used for such research. The sensitive detection of ultra-trace levels of biogenic components requires an LC that offers highly accurate and stable liquid-delivery performance at nano-liter flow rates (10 to 600 nL/minute) in order to separate the target components and supply them to the MS. To meet such demands, Shimadzu developed a nanoflow LC system combining a new pump, which provides stable flow and concentration control in the ultra-low flow-rate region, with software that permits simple, intuitive operation via a graphical user interface.
Combining this new system with a Shimadzu LCMS-IT-TOF or MALDI TOF-MS AXIMA Series mass spectrometer achieves highly reliable analysis for atomol- to femtomol-order* ultra-trace levels of biogenic components.
The nanoflow-LC market is growing at about 10% p.a. in life science-related fields, such as pharmaceuticals and medical research, and Shimadzu aims to sell 70 units of the Prominence nano in this market in the first year of its availability.

The features of the new product are outlined below.

Nanoflow Pump Unit to Enhance the Accuracy and Reproducibility of Protein Analysis

Prominence nano applies feedback control using a newly developed temperature-controlled flow sensor, which can detect ultra-low flow rates, in the pump unit. It continuously maintains a stable and reproducible liquid flow, even if, for example, the state of the flow path varies due to fluctuations in the load pressure. In combination with a Shimadzu LCMS-IT-TOF high-resolution mass spectrometer, it should significantly enhance the accuracy of biomarker detection and other conventionally difficult protein analyses.

Sample Injection System with Sample Concentration Device Increases the Detection Sensitivity of Ultra-Trace Level Components

Prominence nano incorporates a sample concentration device that concentrates the injected sample before separation. This permits the highly sensitive detection of extremely low-concentration components. The low carryover* of the autosampler* also contributes to the accurate analysis of ultra-trace components.

Reduced Mobile Phase Wastage

In a conventional split-pump* system, most of the mobile phase discharged from the pump is discarded and not used for analysis. Conversely, Prominence nano uses reflux flow control to eliminate mobile phase waste and dramatically reduce consumption to around 1/100 the consumption of a conventional system.

Visual Operation Screen Makes Setting Complex Analytical Conditions Easy

Newly developed software allows visual monitoring and setting of the system status on a graphical interface for simple and intuitive operation. This is particularly useful in simplifying the previously complex setup of 2D liquid chromatography analysis of protein digestion peptides.

Key to the Terminology

* Liquid chromatograph: Separates complex sample components to qualify and quantify the substance.
* Proteome: All proteins existing in an organism.
* Atomol = 10^-18 mol; femtomol = 10^-15 mol. The amount noted in the text corresponds to approximately 10^-14 g to 10^-9 g of proteins.
* Column: A device containing the medium that separates the substances in a liquid chromatograph.
* Autosampler: A device that automatically injects samples into the liquid chromatograph.
* Carryover: Phenomenon of residues from a previous analysis becoming mixed in with the current analysis.
* Split system: The flow is separated at the pump outlet such that only part of the pump output is sent to the column.
* Protein digestion peptide: Peptides obtained by digesting proteins in an enzyme such as trypsin.
* 2D liquid chromatography: LC analysis using two-separation mode columns to analyze complex components.


Prominence nano Combined with LCMS-IT-TOF