MRI: Acquisition of a Fluorescence Activated Cell Sorter to Establish a Flow Cytometry Core Facility at Loyola University Maryland

Loyola University Maryland, Inc., Baltimore MD

Investigators

Abstract

An award is made to Loyola University Maryland to acquire a fluorescence-activated cell sorter (FACS) instrument to establish a new flow cytometry core facility and enhance the existing microscopy core facility. A FACS instrument is capable of measuring multiple fluorescently tagged molecular and cellular properties in cells simultaneously and separating individual cell populations according to these properties from a mixed population. This powerful technology will provide valuable training for undergraduate students enrolled in five Maryland colleges and universities, as well as undergraduate students who come to Loyola from across the US for training in research techniques each summer. In addition, Loyola will develop a summer program for underrepresented students from local area high schools to gain exposure to the FACS instrument and related research. To further engage with the local community, the cell sorter will be accessible to a business incubator for biomedical startup companies to advance research and development of novel cell-based technologies. All these activities will contribute to an enhanced scientific and technology-based environment and economy in Baltimore and the surrounding region. The flow cytometry core facility will serve to support and enrich existing faculty-led research involving undergraduate research students at multiple colleges and universities, including Loyola University Maryland, Goucher College, Notre Dame of Maryland University, Towson University, and Washington College. The FACS technology will enable faculty and students to engage in varied research projects including control of DNA packaging for gene expression in determining cell fate, the interplay between the gut microbiome and the endocrine system, the effect of complementary and alternative medicines on immunity, the impact of heavy metal exposure on DNA repair and toxicity, and the role of cell cycle checkpoint factors in genome integrity and programmed cell death. The addition of the FACS technology will serve to advance the objectives of each of these projects by allowing for the collection of more complex and specific molecular and cellular data, and by allowing for the creation of cell lines specifically selected for their particular properties for future experimentation. Furthermore, there is the potential to aid in development of novel technologies and therapeutics from collaborations with startup and small biotechnology companies. Results from research projects utilizing the FACS instrument will be communicated to the scientific community through peer-reviewed publications with undergraduate co-authors and presentations at regional and national scientific conferences. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.