Proteomic techniques using mass spectrometry (MS) provide a platform for the comprehensive analysis of proteins, thereby facilitating the implementation of systems biology approaches and circumventing the limitations of a traditional, reductionist approach adopted by techniques like western blotting that are based on a priori assumptions of the proteins to be investigated. Furthermore, proteomics is without the constraints of antibody-dependent protein detection and has the capability of detecting post-translational modifications (PTMs), which is beyond the means of gene expression platforms.1