Helmholtz Munich

Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare - New AI Applications in Medicine

Helmholtz Munich hosts the first Platinum level Core Facility for Olink® technology in Germany. We offer Olink® Target 96 and the latest state-of-the-art Olink® Explore 384/3072 platform.

Olink® PEA technology is based on dual recognition of each protein target by a pair of highly specific, oligonucleotide-linked, antibodies creating a unique template for subsequent detection by q-PCR ((Olink®Target96) or NGS readout in the latest breakthrough format (Olink® Explore). The Olink® platform at Helmholtz Munich CF-MPC is Germany’s first Platinum level Olink® provider offering all tools and skills for a comprehensive service. Olink® Target 96 has already been used in more than 900 studies with a rapid increase in clinical applications.
The tabs below give more detailed information on available Olink® formats and the technology.

To book this service please use iLab Core Management system.

Helmholtz Munich hosts the first Platinum level Core Facility for Olink® technology in Germany. We offer Olink® Target 96 and the latest state-of-the-art Olink® Explore 384/3072 platform.

Olink® PEA technology is based on dual recognition of each protein target by a pair of highly specific, oligonucleotide-linked, antibodies creating a unique template for subsequent detection by q-PCR ((Olink®Target96) or NGS readout in the latest breakthrough format (Olink® Explore). The Olink® platform at Helmholtz Munich CF-MPC is Germany’s first Platinum level Olink® provider offering all tools and skills for a comprehensive service. Olink® Target 96 has already been used in more than 900 studies with a rapid increase in clinical applications.
The tabs below give more detailed information on available Olink® formats and the technology.

To book this service please use iLab Core Management system.

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How does the technology work?

The Olink® platforms are based on the Proximity Extension Assay (PEA) technology.

Target 96 panels are 96-plex immunoassay for high throughput detection of protein biomarkers in body fluids. For each biomarker, a matched pair of antibodies linked to unique oligonucleotides binds to the respective protein target. When placed in close proximity, the stretch of nucleotides hybridizes and the double stranded product is then amplified by PCR and detected in multiplexed fashion in a high throughput microfluidic chip system.

Explore 384/3072 is a significantly expanded high-throughput proteomics platform that uses Proximity Extension Assay (PEA) technology coupled to a readout methodology based on Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) using Illumina® Novaseq 6000. Specificity and reproducibility of the assays are rigorously quality controlled (Assarsson et al., PLoSOne 2014). Fig.1 shows the comparison of the two workflows.

Overview of the Target96 and Explore key features. *Only human plasma and serum have been validated so far for all Explore 3072 panels. Other matrices are constantly tested. Plate layout common for both platforms. 88 samples (each spiked with four internal controls: 2x Incubation, Extension and Detection control; in Explore only three internal controls are spiked in), 2x External sample control (plasma pool used to calculate Intra- and Inter-CVs), 3x Negative control (used to calculate the limit of detection) and 3x Plate control (used for normalization).

What does the Olink® platform offer?

Olink® Target 96 provides accurate quantification of up to 1161 human clinically relevant protein biomarkers in plasma and other biological samples using only 1µL sample per panel. Each panel of 92 biomarkers is focused on a specific area of disease or key biology process, for a total of 14 different panels (see the list in Fig.3). Additionally, MOUSE EXPLORATORY is designed for exploratory mouse studies and offers 92 assays for murine proteins which are also detectable in human serum and plasma. A complete list of Target 96 protein biomarkers is available in this link.

Olink® Explore 384 includes assays for about 370 proteins per panel and multiple controls, built into each 384-plex panel. The four Olink Explore 384 panels, i.e. Cardiometabolic, Oncology, Neurology and Inflammation, can be combined to ultimately achieve a quantification of nearly 1500 proteins. The assays for IL-6, IL-8 (CXCL8) and TNF are included for quality control purposes in each of the four 384-plex panels. A complete list of Explore 384 protein biomarkers is available in this link.

The Olink® protein library is further expanded in the Explore 3072 which offers four additional panels for an outstanding proteome coverage that reaches almost 3000 proteins. A preliminary list (subject to changes) of all protein assays in the expanded Explore 3072 library is available upon request.

List of Target96 and Explore panels. Olink® protein library extensively covers the low-abundant dynamic plasma proteome. Here depicted are the main protein categories represented in the library.

OLINK® panel

Olink® panels span a broad dynamic range of protein concentrations and they are designed to cover expected ranges in normal and pathological samples. This extremely sensitive antibody-based technology allows for accurate quantification of human plasma proteins present in concentrations below picogram per milliliter, such as interleukins and hormones. As only very little volume of body fluid is necessary, this methodology can be applied for various epidemiologic or clinical research cohorts.

Literature: Assarsson E, Lundberg M, Holmquist G, Björkesten J, Thorsen SB, Ekman D, Eriksson A, Rennel Dickens E, Ohlsson S, Edfeldt G, Andersson AC, Lindstedt P, Stenvang J, Gullberg M, Fredriksson S. Homogenous 96-plex PEA immunoassay exhibiting high sensitivity, specificity, and excellent scalability. PLoS One. 2014 Apr 22;9(4):e95192.