Surface-Enhanced Laser Desorption/Ionization (SELDI) Technology

Surface enhanced laser desorption/ionization (SELDI) protein array technology represents a collection of analytical tools and protocols that address the challenges of protein separation, protein purification, and protein detection by mass spectrometry (MS). Commercially, SELDI has been embodied within Ciphergen Biosystems Inc. ProteinChip®Array products (Fremont, CA, USA). First introduced as a commercial product in 1997, this collection of tools has played a significant role, although at times controversial, in the shaping of the proteomics field and in particular the role of “biomarkers” and their relevance to translational medicine. Most recently, SELDI technology has demonstrated the ability to translate the fundamental discovery of protein biomarkers into predictive assays for the purpose of diagnosing the presence of metabolic disease and cancer. This chapter serves as an introduction to the fundamentals of SELDI biochip array technology and providing a recent review of new technologies and achievements in basic proteomic and clinical proteomic research. Keywords: protein biochips; proteomics; translational medicine; SELDI; mass spectrometry