Waters Expands Xevo MS Instrument Platform With Next-Generation Mass Spectrometers

SALT LAKE CITY, May 24 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Waters Corporation (NYSE: WAT) introduced today two new mass spectrometers for its Xevo MS platform – the Xevo TQ-S and Xevo G2 QTof – that bring a step change in performance to benchtop mass spectrometry. The product introductions were made at the 58^th annual meeting of the American Society for Mass Spectrometry (ASMS).

The Xevo TQ-S and Xevo G2 QTof are the newest members of the Xevo family of benchtop mass spectrometers first introduced in 2008 and are the most powerful mass spectrometers in their class. Combined with Waters^® ACQUITY® UltraPerformance LC® (UPLC^®) Systems these mass spectrometers offer scientists an unequalled combination of separations power with highest levels of sensitivity whether for compound identification, quantification, and screening, or for extracting the most information from the smallest sample volumes all in a single analysis.

Said Brian Smith, V.P. Mass Spectrometry Operations, Waters Division, "With today's announcements, Waters has firmly established its leadership position in high-performance mass spectrometry. The new features and innovations scientists will find in our new Xevo mass spectrometers, more than anything else, are intended to deliver results. As they have told us time and again, that's what really counts."

At a press conference today, Waters global Vice President of Worldwide Marketing, Dr. Rohit Khanna, remarked, "Our customers have told us they want high-quality, high-impact results faster, and with less effort. These new additions to our Xevo family of mass spectrometers mean we can deliver applications-specific UPLC/MS/MS systems that can help them achieve their scientific and business objectives and put answers to complex challenges within easy reach."

Waters expects to begin shipping the Xevo G2 QTof system in June and the Xevo TQ-S system in September.

Waters Xevo TQ-S Mass Spectrometer

The Waters Xevo TQ-S tandem mass spectrometer represents a step change in targeted quantitative UPLC/Multiple Reaction Monitoring (MRM) analysis. This system is capable of accurately measuring target compounds in complex samples at femtogram levels or below. The Xevo TQ-S is designed for UPLC/MS/MS applications such as biological and medical research, bioanalysis, food safety, environmental monitoring and forensics testing where speed, sensitivity, and accuracy are of paramount importance.

The Xevo TQ-S features new StepWave™ ion-transfer technology, a revolutionary off-axis design for dramatically increasing the efficiency of ion transfer from the ion source to the quadrupole MS analyzer while at the same time actively eliminating undesirable neutral contaminants. This gives the Xevo TQ-S impressive class-leading sensitivity. When compared to earlier generation mass spectrometer models the chromatographic peak areas are typically more than 30 times bigger and the signal-to-noise ratios are typically 5 to 10 times better.

The novel, high speed transfer optics and collision cell design allows the TQ-S system to acquire both full scan MS and MRM data simultaneously on narrow, 1-2 second wide UPLC peaks and still obtain >12 points across the peak, something that is particularly useful in methods development when dealing with a complex matrix, for monitoring for the presence of new components in the sample during routine analysis or troubleshooting an assay.

With the Xevo TQ-S mass spectrometer, scientists can now confidently quantify compounds at lower concentrations than previously possible. The instrument's sensitivity also allows scientists to consider diluting samples in order to reduce matrix effects that interfere with compound measurements. They can also work with smaller sample volumes, a big benefit when analyzing precious biological samples taken from animals or humans.

Waters Xevo G2 QTof Mass Spectrometer

Xevo G2 QTof is a next-generation benchtop exact mass MS/MS mass spectrometer and is the first Xevo time-of-flight mass spectrometer to feature Waters QuanTof™ technology, currently only available with Waters SYNAPT™ G2 MS and G2 HDMS Mass Spectrometers. This technology brings research-grade quantitative and qualitative analytical performance to research, academic, and industrial laboratories. QuanTof technology can extend the dynamic range of previous generation Xevo QTof systems to greater than four orders of magnitude and results in much higher mass resolution (20,000 FWHM) for greater efficiency and productivity in the laboratory.

Combined with Waters ACQUITY UPLC System, the Xevo G2 QTof leverages the power of UPLC/MS(E), a simple, patented, method of data acquisition that comprehensively catalogs complex samples in a single analysis. This gives scientists a comprehensive digital record of the sample that can be re-interrogated at will, eliminating the need to re-analyze  the sample which scientists often have to do when, for example, using labeled approaches of "data directed" protein quantification.

The Xevo G2 QTof is designed for labs driven by the need to produce accurate quantitative and qualitative information on increasingly large numbers of samples when doing intact protein analysis, peptide mapping, oligonucleotide analysis, metabolite identification, metabolite profiling, proteomics experiments, and food safety screening.

"The Xevo G2 QTof outperforms in many aspects," says Dr. George Keenan of SASA, Edinburgh, Scotland, a scientist who has developed sub-ten minute UPLC/MS/MS methods for surveillance monitoring of as many as 160 different pesticides in fruits and vegetables and whose laboratory is one of the highest ranking in Europe on proficiency tests administered by the European Union Community Reference Labs Survey. "Its resolution and precision is significantly superior to earlier generation quadrupole time-of-flight instruments and it has the sensitivity our lab requires for analyzing foods for compliance monitoring with EU regulations."

Engineered for Simplicity and Sharing Common Elements

Acting on feedback from scientists, many trained in disciplines others than mass spectrometry or analytical chemistry, Waters created the Xevo instrument platform in 2008 to make mass spectrometry measurements easier than ever to obtain.

Xevo customers have since reported they are experiencing a sustained improvement in the consistency of sample results from operator to operator and lab to lab.  They attribute this phenomenon to Waters' design philosophy of Engineered Simplicity™ built into the family of Xevo MS systems. Engineered Simplicity describes the ability of Waters MS instruments to provide pertinent information in the simplest manner possible, allowing scientists to convert data into business critical knowledge faster and with greater assurance.  The importance of instrument-to-instrument and lab-to-lab reproducibility is further heightened in today's pharmaceutical industry environment with more manufacturers relying on contract research organizations than at any other time in history.

Waters Xevo family of mass spectrometers share several common features, each intended to eliminate the hassles and headaches once common to mass spectrometry.

There's Waters Universal Source Architecture. Waters ion source options -  among them electrospray ionization (EI), atmospheric press chemical ionization (APCI), atmospheric pressure photo ionization (APPI), atmospheric pressure gas chromatography (APGC), atmospheric pressure solids analysis probe  - share common design features that, within minutes, allow them to be interchanged or removed for cleaning without the use of tools and without breaking instrument vacuum. A daunting task that often takes several hours for other mass spectrometers isn't so intimidating any more. The APGC source is unique in that it allows scientists to make exact mass LC/MS/MS and GC/MS/MS measurements on one Xevo TQ-S Mass Spectrometer eliminating the need to dedicate a mass spectrometer for LC/MS/MS work and another to GC/MS/MS work.

The operation and maintenance of mass spectrometers once required considerable expertise, inside knowledge, and a steep learning curve. No more. With IntelliStart™ technology, Waters has automated many of the manual steps once required before any sample could be tested. These include automated calibration and system performance monitoring.

Xevo Mass Spectrometers are optimized for use with Waters ACQUITY UPLC Systems. UPLC technology is synonymous with sharper and narrower chromatographic peaks, increased peak heights, faster separations, and better signal-to-noise performance leading to greater all-around MS sensitivity. The combination of UPLC, Xevo Mass Spectrometry, MassLynx™ Software, and UPLC chemistries has given rise to applications-specific LC/MS/MS systems uniquely qualified to address many different laboratory challenges.

MicroConstants, San Diego, CA is a GLP-compliant Contract Research Organization dedicated to providing premier quality Bioanalytical, drug metabolism, pharmacokinetic, formulation, and immunoassay support services to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies worldwide. Says Dr. David Johnson, MicroConstants Director of DMPK, "The ACQUITY UPLC system is capable of providing us some of the most reproducible chromatography I've ever seen in an LC. When you couple it with our Xevo TQ, the combination has allowed us to get down into the picogram per milliliter levels quickly and easily with a variety of small molecules.  We have rapidly turned around many sensitive method development projects using this equipment."

About Waters Corporation (www.waters.com)

For more than 50 years, Waters Corporation (NYSE: WAT) creates business advantages for laboratory-dependent organizations by delivering practical and sustainable innovation to enable significant advancements in such areas as healthcare delivery, environmental management, food safety, and water quality worldwide.

Pioneering a connected portfolio of separations science, laboratory information management, mass spectrometry and thermal analysis, Waters technology breakthroughs and laboratory solutions provide an enduring platform for customer success.

With revenue of $1.5 billion in 2009 and 5,200 employees, Waters is driving scientific discovery and operational excellence for customers worldwide.

Waters, UPLC, UltraPerformance LC, ACQUITY UPLC, ACQUITY, IntelliStart, MassLynx, StepWave, QuanTof, Engineered Simplicity and Xevo are trademarks of Waters Corporation.

SOURCE Waters Corporation