Protea introduces new molecular imaging technology

MORGANTOWN, W.Va., June 21, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Protea Biosciences Group, Inc. (OTCQB: PRGB) ("Protea") announced its development of new technology that enables the direct molecular imaging of the distribution of metabolites and peptides in human clinical tissue samples. The results were presented by Dr. Erin Seeley, Principal Scientist at Protea, at the 65^th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Mass Spectrometry and Allied Topics, June 4-8, held in Indianapolis, Indiana.

The results showed the ability to image the distribution of both metabolites and peptides in tissue that had been preserved with formalin fixation and paraffin embedding (FFPE) protocols, which is the common method for preserving clinical samples. While preserving the tissue for archiving, FFPE preservation can limit subsequent molecular analysis.

"Although the analysis of peptides and proteins on tissue is a relatively routine procedure, the direct analysis of metabolites in the preserved tissue is unique," stated Dr. Seeley.  She continued, "These results demonstrate the first time that Protea's LAESI (Laser Ablation Electrospray Ionization) platform has been shown to image metabolites in tissue without removing paraffin, which provides more certainty around molecule localization. Using our LAESI platform combined with MALDI provided complementary results, demonstrating the utility of applying both imaging modalities."

The results show Protea's ability to achieve seamless molecular imaging of both peptides and metabolites in FFPE tissue. LAESI is a proprietary bioanalytical technology that directly detects and maps molecules without the need to apply chemicals or introduce tags or tracers.  

"We now have the ability to analyze banks of archived clinical samples, which can provide new insights into biological pathways of disease, response to treatment, and even aid in diagnosis," stated Haddon Goodman, Vice President Corporate Development. He continued, "Our development of methods for analyzing FFPE tissue with our proprietary LAESI platform and MALDI workflows will enable our ability to analyze archived tumor samples. This new technology, will be used to advance our development of a new class of cancer diagnostics."

About Protea Biosciences Group, Inc.:  Protea Biosciences Group, Inc. (OTCQB:PRGB) provides innovative bioanalytical solutions to the pharmaceutical and life science industries by applying the Company's proprietary technology to identify and characterize the proteins, metabolites, lipids and other biologically-active molecules which are the byproducts of all living cells and life forms. Protea provides revolutionary capabilities that enable the identification and spatial display of biologically-active molecules in tissue and cells. Molecular imaging can be obtained without sample preparation, labeling or antibody techniques, thereby integrating for the first time direct identification of molecules with anatomic pathology. The Company is using its technology to develop a new class of diagnostics for the differential diagnosis of cancer.

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Protea and LAESI are registered trademarks of Protea Biosciences Group, Inc.

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SOURCE Protea Biosciences Group, Inc.

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