Proteomics: We have the technology
Tuesday, 02 December, 2003
Doing proteomics is expensive, relying on a suite of new and traditional technology with hefty price tags -- sample prep, mass specs, gel spot cutters, electrophoresis, and substantial IT hardware.
But proteomics pioneer Keith Williams, CEO of Sydney-based company Proteome Systems (PSL), is asking labs to think even bigger when it comes to getting serious about proteomics research.
PSL's flagship product is ProteomIQ, a fully-integrated, high-throughput platform that comes with a seven-figure price tag. "The way to think about it is to compare it with your telephone system and infrastructure," Williams says. "It gives the user what a big pharma would have."
Without integration, PSL says, it's harder to achieve precise results from what is already tricky science. ProteomIQ incorporates elements like solid phase in sample preparation, robotics, and the ability to precisely track information to take proteomics out of the hands of the hardcore specialists and make it available to a broader range of researchers.
And, of course, to make it faster. "Protein science has been around a long time, so there's a lot of stuff already there. There are 10 PhDs -- 40 years of work -- on my bookshelf by people who worked on a single molecule. There's no future in that sort of pace."
ProteomIQ systems are already installed at Charles River Laboratories in the US and at a Japanese lab, but although PSL has collaborated widely with Australian researchers, there are still no buyers at home. "The sad thing is I reckon about $50 million has been spent in Australia on protein system upgrades in the last few years, and not a dollar has been spent on Australian technology," Williams says.
The company is aiming to list on the Australian Stock Exchange in the next six months, and market observers are already talking up the float as a potential catalyst for the Australian biotech industry.
"We didn't want to do it until we were a more established business," Williams says. "We brought in more than $20 million in revenue last year."
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