Mass spectrometry in medicine: a technology for the future?

Abstract Biological markers, or ‘biomarkers,’ have application in diagnostic, prognostic and therapeutic investigations, with an ever-increasing catalog of endogenous biological entities such as proteins/peptides, lipids and metabolites being used in clinical settings. Uses of biomarkers include diagnostic rule in/out tests (e.g., high-sensitive troponin for acute myocardial infarction [1]), risk stratification/prediction of patient outcome (e.g., natriuretic peptides in cardiovascular diseases [2]) and monitoring of response to administered medicines (e.g., metabolic signatures of pharmacological interventions [3]). The use of biomarkers, and subsequently their success in improving personalized clinical information, relies on the collection, processing and analysis of biological samples which should be done to an established protocol. MS,...