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Turning Science into Solutions: How Trace Labs Is Expanding Proteomics Capability at Stellenbosch University

A new Expert Research Fellow affiliation brings world-class proteomics and protein chemistry expertise directly into the Department of Physiological Sciences.

When Dr Maré Vlok founded Trace Labs (Pty) Ltd in September 2024, after his resignation from the Central Analytical Facility at Stellenbosch University, the vision was straightforward: to make elite-level proteomics and protein chemistry genuinely accessible to researchers who need it most. Now, with his recent appointment as Expert Research Fellow in the Department of Physiological Sciences at Stellenbosch University, that vision is being put to work in a department that houses world-recognised leaders in their respective fields.

Professor Ben Loos, Chair of Physiological Sciences, captured the excitement well when he announced the affiliation: "Maré brings unique expertise, which, in the times of Omics, is indispensable." It is hard to overstate how much that expertise matters. As biological research increasingly moves toward systems-level understanding — integrating genomics, transcriptomics, metabolomics, and proteomics — having a dedicated protein chemistry specialist embedded within a department is a genuine strategic advantage.

Who Is Maré Vlok, and What Is Trace Labs?

Maré is a biochemist with over two decades of hands-on experience in proteomics, mass spectrometry, and protein chemistry. He earned his PhD in Biochemistry from Stellenbosch University in 2005, and has since built a career defined by both technical rigour and collaborative science. His track record speaks for itself: over 26 peer-reviewed publications, more than 1,270 citations, an H-index of 15, and contributions spanning long COVID research, cancer biomarker discovery, neuroscience, plant biology, infectious diseases, and more.

Trace Labs is his vehicle for translating that expertise into a flexible, client-centred service. As a turnkey proteomics and protein chemistry provider, Trace Labs handles everything from experimental design, method development, and sample preparation through to data acquisition, analysis, and final reporting. Researchers don't need to be proteomics specialists themselves — that's precisely the point. Maré meets scientists where they are and fills the technical gaps that so often slow projects down or limit their scope.

For example, Maré did the method development for the study, Protocol for unified metabolomics and proteomics analysis of formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue, recently published in STAR Protocols. And of course, he was the scientist responsible for developing the globally-recognised protocol for isolating the fibrinogen microclots found in patients with Long COVID (SARS-CoV-2 spike protein S1 induces fibrin(ogen) resistant to fibrinolysis: Implications for microclot formation in COVID-19).

What This Affiliation Means for Researchers at SU

For the Department of Physiological Sciences, the partnership with Trace Labs opens up several exciting avenues.

Laser Capture Microdissection and Spatial Proteomics

Professor Loos has already pointed to one particularly compelling application: proteome analysis on laser-dissected tissue — from tumours, or any tissue of choice. Laser capture microdissection allows researchers to isolate specific cell populations from complex tissue sections with extraordinary precision. Coupling that technique with high-resolution mass spectrometry-based proteomics is technically demanding, requiring expertise in sample preparation from minute quantities, nano-LC-MS/MS workflows, and specialised data analysis pipelines. Maré's hands-on experience with instruments, and his many years of managing full proteomics workflows at Stellenbosch's own Central Analytical Facility, make him ideally positioned to establish and support exactly this kind of work.

Experimental Design and Grant Support

One of the less visible but enormously valuable contributions Maré can offer is upstream — at the design phase. Poor experimental design in proteomics studies is a persistent problem in the literature, and it can compromise an entire project before a single sample is run. As an experienced specialist who has assisted principal investigators with grant writing throughout his career, Maré can help researchers frame proteomics-based aims convincingly and ensure the methodology proposed is both scientifically sound and technically feasible.

Postgraduate Training and Capacity Building

Maré has a long history of training and supervising researchers, from Honours students to PhD candidates. He has taught proteomics modules for Honours students in Pharmacology at Stellenbosch and in Molecular Biology at the University of the Western Cape, and has served as external moderator for the UWC Biotechnology Honours programme since 2019. He has co-supervised multiple Masters and PhD candidates. This depth of teaching experience means postgraduate students in Physiological Sciences gain access not just to equipment and data, but to genuine mentorship from someone who understands how to scaffold complex technical knowledge.

Broad Analytical Reach Across Research Themes

Physiological Sciences is an inherently interdisciplinary department, and proteomics is a technology that cuts across disciplines. Maré's own publication record illustrates the breadth of what mass spectrometry-based protein analysis can contribute: studies on long COVID and fibrin microclots, diabetes and wound healing, Parkinson's disease pathobiology, prostate cancer biomarkers, drug metabolism, and drought tolerance in crops. Whatever the biological question at the heart of a physiological sciences project, there is likely a proteomics angle worth exploring — and now there is an affiliated specialist to help explore it.

 

A Partnership Built for the Omics Era

The affiliation reflects a broader truth about modern biological research: the questions we are asking have outgrown what any single laboratory or discipline can answer alone. Understanding how a tissue responds to disease, how a therapeutic intervention reshapes the cellular proteome, or how environmental stress reprogrammes protein expression requires integrative approaches and specialist technical support.

Trace Labs, through its affiliation with Stellenbosch University's Department of Physiological Sciences, is positioned to be exactly that kind of enabling partner — rigorous, responsive, and deeply experienced. For researchers in the department, it means fewer barriers between a scientific question and a meaningful answer.

 

To enquire about proteomics and protein chemistry services through Trace Labs, visit www.tracelabs.co.za or reach out directly at mare@tracelabs.co.za.