Evaluating the Performance of the Astral Mass Analyzer for Quantitative Proteomics Using Data-Independent Acquisition

We evaluate the quantitative
performance of the newly released
Asymmetric Track Lossless (Astral) analyzer. Using data-independent
acquisition, the Thermo Scientific Orbitrap Astral mass spectrometer
quantifies 5 times more peptides per unit time than state-of-the-art
Thermo Scientific Orbitrap mass spectrometers, which have long been
the gold standard for high-resolution quantitative proteomics. Our
results demonstrate that the Orbitrap Astral mass spectrometer can
produce high-quality quantitative measurements across a wide dynamic
range. We also use a newly developed extracellular vesicle enrichment
protocol to reach new depths of coverage in the plasma proteome, quantifying
over 5000 plasma proteins in a 60 min gradient with the Orbitrap Astral
mass spectrometer.