RADARS--A RAPID DATA ARCHIVAL AND RETRIEVAL SYSTEM

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In the wake of the human genome project, the next important step towards understanding and curing human disease is the characterization of all mature gene products that are encoded in the genome, i.e. the proteome. For example, knowledge of the difference between normal and transformed cells in terms of which proteins are present and how they are post- translationally modified is important information for understanding cancer. Mass spectrometry is a powerful experimental tool for high- throughput identification and characterization of proteins and provides means for rapidly obtaining large amounts of valuable experimental data. However, the analysis of this data can be very time-consuming, and presently no integrated system exists for facile analysis, reliable storage and fast retrieval of protein mass spectra and protein sequences. We propose to develop a Rapid Data Archival and Retrieval System (RADARS) for the storage of protein mass spectrometry experiments; the system will be integrated with a suite of tools for the automated analysis and comparison of protein mass spectra and protein and DNA sequences. RADARS will allow for storage of the original mass spectra, description of the experimental conditions, and the results of the analysis performed. PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS: Presently many pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies are expanding their efforts in large-scale protein analysis for the identification of novel drug targets. RADARS will enable the analysis and management of the data produced in those projects.