Mass spectrometry-based protein quantification and its application in pharmacokinetic research

Quantitative proteomics is a mass spectrometry-based toolkit used to analyze and quantify entire proteins contained in whole cells, tissues or organisms. It has become an increasingly important element in exploring the mechanism of various biological processes such as discovering novel biomarkers and unknown drug targets. Emerging advances in biological mass spectrometry instrumentation and data acquisition methodologies have provided a state-of-the-art platform for protein quantification, prompting the research of proteomics evolving from the simple qualitative to the accurate quantitative approach. This review aims to introduce the most recent advancements in mass spectrometry instrumentation and methodologies of data acquisition, focusing on their characteristics and applying fields. It also highlights several significant applications of biological mass spectrometry in pharmaceutical research such as quantifitation of drug transporters and metabolizing enzymes, and pharmacokinetic study of therapeutic peptides and proteins.