A tool designed to determine the mass of peptides or proteins based on their constituent amino acid sequence. The calculation considers the atomic weights of each amino acid within the sequence and subtracts the mass of water molecules removed during peptide bond formation. For example, if a user inputs the sequence ‘Gly-Ala’, the calculation sums the weights of Glycine and Alanine and subtracts the mass of one water molecule to arrive at the sequence’s total mass.
This calculation is essential in proteomics and biochemistry for several reasons. It aids in identifying proteins from mass spectrometry data, verifying the accuracy of synthesized peptides, and predicting the behavior of molecules in various analytical techniques. Historically, these calculations were performed manually, a time-consuming and error-prone process. The advent of automated tools has significantly increased accuracy and efficiency in research and development.