Meet our customer: Peak Proteins
Peak Proteins is a contract research organisation providing research services to biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies and academic institutions. Specialising in drug discovery, Peak Proteins manufacture engineered proteins used in the initial screening stage. They also determine the structure of proteins, often bound to small molecules of interest to assist drug design by X-ray crystallography. Protein mass spectrometry, Peak Proteins’ final service, is an incredibly valuable analytical technique used in both the quality control and the design stages of protein research.
Using highly specialised and skilled science, Peak Proteins was founded by current Chief Executive Officer, Dr Mark Abbott. Mark worked in the pharmaceutical industry for over 20 years as a protein biochemist at AstraZeneca. He led teams providing protein expression and purification expertise in drug discovery projects in multiple research areas in both small molecules and biologics.
“At the heart of Peak Proteins is the science. We are a group of individuals who really enjoy research. We enjoy understanding how proteins function and how they can be manipulated to generate value to drug discovery companies,” commented Mark.
Like Cryoniss's vapour phase liquid nitrogen facility, Peak Proteins are based at Alderley Park, where they enjoy collaborating with other life sciences companies on site.
Mark added, “How we interact with our clients is important to us. We are natural collaborators who work in a flexible manner with many different types of companies. Understanding what a client needs to drive their project forward is the key to our service”.
Peak Proteins use several different protein expression systems including mammalian. As a result, Cryoniss was called in as part of the regular mycoplasma screening of cell cultures to check for contamination.
Sonia Houghton, co-founder of Cryoniss said, “It is always good to provide a service to another member of the Alderley Park community”.
Likewise, Mark observed, “The turnaround time was impressive. And of course, nice to know we don't have a problem!".
