Agilent Technologies Inc and BioTrove Inc recently announced that they have signed an agreement to co-market Agilent 6410 Triple Quadrupole Mass Spectrometer with BioTrove's RapidFire high-throughput sample preparation systems. The two systems would together provide an integrated solution for ultra-high-throughput preparation and analysis of in vitro biological assays in pharmaceutical drug research.

According to Agilent general manager, pharmaceutical and biotech market, Guenter Nill, this relationship would enable clients to integrate the fastest sample-preparation system on the market with the strength of leading-edge analytical mass spectrometry. "It significantly benefits pharmaceutical companies that want to spend less time and money discovering new leads and developing more effective medicines," he added.

Using innovative microfluidic technology for sample preparation and analysis faster than eight seconds per sample, RapidFire Mass Spectrometry (RF-MS) eliminates bottlenecks created by traditional mass spectrometry throughput. It has been used by 10 of the top 15 pharmaceutical companies as an established drug discovery tool for more than four years. Also, RF-MS is routinely used in applications including the high-throughput screening of previously intractable drug targets, cytochrome P450 inhibition and other pre-clinical ADME assays, as well as in directed evolution studies.

The Agilent 6410 Triple Quadrupole LC/MS establishes a new standard for value in a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer, delivering outstanding sensitivity and great ease of use along with traditional Agilent reliability. Femtogram-level sensitivity and rugged, reliable performance make this the instrument of choice for drug discovery and development.

"The collaboration between Agilent and BioTrove provides an improved, integrated high-throughput screening solution, enabling biopharmaceutical companies to better use their talent, time and targets," said Al Luderer, president and CEO, BioTrove.

"BioTrove's expertise in sample preparation for high-throughput screening and early ADME is a natural complement to Agilent's strength in analytical mass spectrometry. Together, we are enabling walk-away analysis of lead compounds against valuable targets that would be otherwise impossible to screen, helping biopharma clients meet the challenge of accelerating drug discovery research," he added.