Measuring kinases and phosphatases using high-throughput MALDI and PEAs

Kinases and phosphatases are key enzymes in cellular signaling cascades, differentiation, and regulating protein function. Many kinases and phosphatases offer promising therapeutic strategies to combat various diseases. These enzymes act on various substrates, including proteins, nucleic acids, lipids, and small molecules, challenging the development of suitable and broadly applicable assay methodologies for measuring activity and characterizing inhibitors. Here, we demonstrate how combining innovative surface chemistry using polymeric enrichment arrays (PEAs) and state of the art MALDI mass spectrometry offers a label-free and high-throughput assay that is the gold standard for distinguishing distinct activities on virtually any substrate and quantitatively analyzing kinase and phosphatase inhibitors.