The development of SRM assays is transforming proteomics research

Bottom-up targeted proteomics using SRM is a powerful analytical technology, but it requires the development of SRM assays, which is a complex procedure. Whereas proteome-wide SRM assays have recently been developed for a small number of species, this is not so for the mouse. In this issue, Percy et al. report the development of hundreds of mouse SRM assays. Their development required shotgun MS to identify proteotypic peptides, synthesis, and LC-MS characterization of peptide standards, and interlaboratory SRM to robustly assess the quality of the assays. The resulting SRM assays are intended to be used to analyze mouse plasma and cardiac tissue, primarily for cardiovascular disease and cancer research.