SILAC for biomarker discovery

Stable isotope labeling in cell culture (SILAC) has been employed in mass spectrometry-based proteomics for nearly a decade. This method is based on cells in culture metabolically incorporating isotope-coded essential amino acids and allows the quantification of global protein populations to identify characteristic changes. Variations of this technique developed over the years allow the application of SILAC not only to cell culture-derived samples but also to tissues and human specimens, making this powerful technique amenable to clinically relevant samples. In this review we provide an overview of different SILAC-derived methods and their use in the identification and development of biomarkers.