Geneva, Switzerland – May 27, 2008 - Geneva Bioinformatics (GeneBio) SA today announced the addition of a new software platform to its growing suite of products. SmileMS builds upon GeneBio’s existing mass spectrometry (MS)-driven franchise and extends it beyond protein analysis to small molecules.
SmileMS is a unique software platform for the identification and analysis of small molecules by mass spectrometry. Developed in collaboration with the Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics (SIB) and Prof. Denis Hochstrasser’s group at the Geneva University Hospitals, SmileMS is an innovative solution that targets an unmet yet growing need for efficient and automatable processes using LC-MS techniques for routine daily analysis of small molecules. Though MS manufacturers are selling an increasing number of instruments for small molecule analysis, the bioinformatics side of the story remains until now very poorly addressed. The SmileMS solution tackles this challenge by providing:
1. Robust, machine-independent software for the analysis of MS spectra from small molecules using the strengths of Phenyx’s scoring & learning algorithm
2. A modern and dynamic user interface enabling users to seamlessly navigate through and share their results
3. An open database of small molecule spectra allowing each user to further add both public and private data, enrich their proper search domain and more importantly share this database with other users as desired
Mass spectrometry has revolutionized the life sciences in many applications. Small molecule-based MS is an extensive field stretching beyond basic research to highly professional and production-based applications used in toxicological analysis in clinics, forensic applications utilized in food control and doping applications. Major MS manufacturers anticipate with great interest the increasing variety of applicable uses for this field, as it has the potential to bring MS to as-yet untapped market segments.
“I am very excited to announce this addition to our existing software suite and further reinforce our positioning within the blossoming MS field,” said Nasri Nahas, CEO of GeneBio. “The development and launch of SmileMS is a strong testament to GeneBio’s ability to quickly adapt to and cope with a constantly evolving environment by building upon our existing know-how to provide partners and clients innovative solutions for their demands. SmileMS will position GeneBio beyond its historical proteomics business and open the gate to a plethora of new applications and developments in the field of mass spectrometry that we are anxious to discover with our partners. SmileMS is already being tested for a number of applications, namely toxicology in clinics, forensic and food control and a few MS manufacturers have already shown high interest in this platform. We wish long life for this new member of GeneBio’s product family.”
“The discontinuation by BioRad of the Remedy system has created a real vacancy in the clinical toxicology laboratories,” said Prof. Denis Hochstrasser, MD, Chairman of the Department of Laboratory and Genetic Medicine at the Geneva University Hospitals and co-founder of GeneBio. “Having used GeneBio’s Phenyx proteomic software for several years in our department, I was intimately convinced that the algorithm could be used to give something similarly robust to deal with the challenges raised by small molecule analysis. My lab has been thoroughly working with the GeneBio team for more than a year now and we are very happy with the quality of the results SmileMS is producing in its early version. The tool by far surpasses other tools we have tested for both the quality of its results, its user-friendliness and most importantly its extreme flexibility; using the same tool and databases with different separation methods and instruments as well as sharing the results amongst different users through Web access show great promise for routine clinical application.”
For more information about SmileMS and for product demonstrations, please visit GeneBio booth #27 at the upcoming ASMS Conference on Mass Spectrometry in Denver, Colorado, from June 1-5.
About GeneBio Geneva Bioinformatics (GeneBio) SA is a leading bioinformatics company providing the life science community with world-class proteomics software that bridges the gap between information gathering and knowledge generation. Established in 1997, we focus our expertise on protein identification and characterization as well as proteome imaging, offering clients and partners a high degree of specialization essential to proteomics research. Close ties to academic peers and a thorough network of distribution and strategic partners give us both unfettered access to scientific excellence and recognized market presence so that we may best serve the scientific community. For more information about GeneBio, please visit: www.genebio.com.
GeneBio contact: Mr. Andrew Smith Marketing Manager andrew.smith@genebio.com Tel. +41.22.702.99.00
