Agilent Technologies’ Advanced Software Enables Performance, Usability of New LC/MS Systems
Agilent Technologies Inc. today introduced advanced software that enables the high performance and usability of its new 6000 Series Triple Quadrupole and Quadrupole Time-of-Flight (Q-TOF) LC/MS systems, which are expected to help Agilent double its market share in LC/MS by 2008.
The Agilent MassHunter Workstation software will allow scientists to transform large amounts of raw data into meaningful information about the identity and quantity of compounds found in complex mixtures in applications that include food safety, environmental and forensic analysis, drug discovery and development, proteomics and metabolomics research. The software platform supports instrument control, data acquisition, qualitative and quantitative analysis, and reporting. It combines advanced functionality, ease-of-use and open architecture to make the power of MS analysis accessible to a wide range of scientists beyond the traditional core lab users.
“We designed the Agilent MassHunter Workstation from the ground up, based on intensive customer feedback, and used the most advanced algorithms and the most user-friendly interface tools,” said Taia Ergueta, general manager of Agilent’s mass spectrometry business. “The easier a software package is to learn and use, the faster customers will be able to increase their own productivity. This is one of the main design criteria behind the new platform.”
The MassHunter Workstation provides an integrated, single point of instrument control and data acquisition for Agilent’s new LC/MS instruments, with powerful real-time monitoring, method set-up and Agilent’s proprietary autotune for automated MS system tuning and mass calibration. Customers using both Q-TOF and triple quad LC/MS can easily move from one system to another without having to master different software or substantially change their methods.
MassHunter .NET-based qualitative and quantitative analysis software modules feature compound-centric data mining and navigation, providing the most advanced data processing tools available for LC/MS. Through unique algorithms, the MassHunter Qualitative Analysis software allows users to automatically find and extract all spectral and chromatographic information for each component in a sample. Powerful data navigation capabilities permit users to browse through compound-specific information in a single sample and compare chromatograms and spectra among multiple samples. The software also includes a customizable user interface and the capability to save, export or copy results into other applications.
The MassHunter Quantitative software supports simple and efficient review of large multi-compound quantitation batches. A graphical “Batch-at-a-Glance” interface allows users to navigate results by compound or sample, or switch between the two approaches. A sophisticated quantitation engine allows users to set up over 20 different outlier criteria, and a novel parameter-less integrator facilitates reliable unsupervised quantitation. The ability to filter results and focus on outliers or questionable peak integrations significantly reduces the data review time for large multi-compound batches. A method task editor and “Curve-Fit Assistant” provide for simple method and multi-level calibration setup.
The MassHunter Workstation also supports uniquely flexible results reporting with Microsoft(R) Excel, a custom reporting macro add-in, and report templates. All results and system parameters are stored in XML (a standard data interchange format) and therefore can be extracted into Excel-based reports and imported into proprietary customer databases.
Powerful Application Software
Agilent has also introduced a wide range of application-specific software that complements the MassHunter Workstation software and allows researchers to address their specific application needs and workflows:
— The new MassHunter Profiling software enables comparative expression analysis for biomarker discovery and analysis of impurities and target compounds.
— The new MassHunter Bioconfirmation software provides a truly automated, unattended solution for characterization of recombinant proteins or confirmation of synthetic peptides.
— The upgraded Spectrum Mill for MassHunter Workstation facilitates high-throughput protein identification, characterization and quantitation for proteomic or biomarker research.
Open Architecture
The MassHunter Workstation makes extensive use of industry standards in its user interface, networking architectures and data interchange standards, which allow it to integrate seamlessly into Agilent’s laboratory informatics portfolio or a customer’s own IT infrastructure. Other features of the software platform include the ability to:
— Transfer information or images into commonly used office or business applications.
— Send MS information across a company’s network.
— Archive data in Agilent’s OpenLab system for centralized enterprise or laboratory-wide data management.
— Integrate with Agilent’s GeneSpring bioinformatics platform, which can synthesize information from diverse types of analyses, including genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics. This helps scientists gain a more comprehensive understanding of complex biological processes.
The MassHunter Workstation will eventually support Agilent’s entire 6000 Series family of LC/MS systems, as well as the company’s GC/MS and ICP/MS products. Through the use of industry standards, Agilent also intends to support data generated from multivendor MS systems. This will enable customers to continue using their existing hardware investments, while upgrading to the most modern MS processing tools in the industry.
For more information on the MassHunter Workstation and related application-specific software, visit www.agilent.com/chem/MassHunter.
Agilent in Mass Spectrometry
Agilent is a leading provider of GC/MS, LC/MS and ICP-MS technologies for organic and inorganic spectroscopy. Among the company’s key products are the 5973 and 5975 inert MSDs, the 7500 Series ICP-MS systems, and the new Agilent 6000 Series LC/MS triple quadrupole, ion trap, time-of-flight and quadrupole time-of-flight instruments. Agilent provides innovative HPLC-Chip/MS technology and the broadest range of ion sources in the industry. As a leader in separations and software, Agilent can address the entire customer workflow from sample introduction through data analysis.
About Agilent Technologies
Agilent Technologies Inc. (NYSE:A) is the world’s premier measurement company and a technology leader in communications, electronics, life sciences and chemical analysis. The company’s 20,000 employees serve customers in more than 110 countries. Agilent had net revenue of $5.1 billion in fiscal 2005. Information about Agilent is available on the Web at www.agilent.com .
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