TMT29 plex: Higher order multiplexing with inherent interference correction

Tandem mass tag (TMT) technology enables mass spectrometry-based multiplexed sample profiling of protein abundance. The degree of isobaric labeling with TMT has increased from 2 to 6, 11, 16 [1] and recently 18 [2] channels, enabling the development of higher throughput assays. In TMT experiments, measurement of reporter tag intensities is confounded by ratio compression. Although both pre- and post-acquisition methods have been developed to decrease interference, ratio compression remains a problem in complex samples. The work of Sun et al. presented a TMT29-plex workflow that combines the TMT11-plex and TMTpro18-plex labeling strategies and uses their inherent features to address the ratio compression problem, increasing the TMT throughput and quantitative accuracy for potential applications [3].