Instrumentation for the Purification and Quantification of Proteins and Nucleic Acids

该奖项提供资金，使购买存储荧光屏和荧光成像设备，可以结合使用，以定位和测量放射性生物大分子。 这样的装置已经成为蛋白质和核酸的定性和定量分析中的大量程序的基本仪器，通常在使用凝胶电泳的分离程序之后。 由放射性生物分子发射的电离辐射产生的潜像由存储荧光屏捕获，然后由荧光成像装置扫描。 所产生的图像可以数字格式存储，以便进行图像显示、分析，并在需要时制作出版质量的数据图像。存储荧光屏和磷光成像仪的使用取代了传统X射线胶片的使用，并消除了对胶片显影和扫描的需要。该成像仪还可用于检测荧光发色团化学标记的分子，而无需屏幕。该仪器将为本科生和研究生水平的跨学科研究和教育工作中的5个主要用户和3个次要用户提供服务。所要求的设备将放在靠近所有主要用户的研究实验室的中心地点。这种仪器的可用性将对用户群体正在进行的研究的质量和数量产生巨大影响，包括研究生和NSF资助的本科生研究经验-现场项目的参与者。 用户组正在研究的实验问题包括果蝇和四膜虫基因表达的发育调节、甲状腺激素受体mRNA的研究和酵母线粒体的分析。

This award provides funds to enable purchase of storage phosphor screens and a phosphorimaging device that can be used in combination to locate and measure radioactive biological macromolecules. Such devices have become essential instrumentation for a large variety of procedures in the qualitative and quantitative analysis of proteins and nucleic acids, typically following separation procedures that make use gel electrophoresis. Latent images, produced by ionizing radiation emitted by the radioactive biomolecules, are captured by the storage phosphor screens which are then scanned by the phosphorimaging device. The resultant image can be stored in digital format to permit image display, analysis and if required, the preparation of publication-quality images of the data. The use of storage phosphor screen and phosphorimager replaces the use of conventional X-ray film and eliminates the need for development and scanning of film. The imager can also be used to detect molecules chemically labeled with fluorescent chromophores without the need for screens.The instrumentation will serve 5 major users and 3 minor users in interdisciplinary research and education efforts at both the undergraduate and graduate level. The requested equipment will be housed in a central location in close proximity to the research laboratories of all the major users. The availability of such instrumentation will have an enormous impact on the quality and volume of the research being performed by the user groups, including graduate students and participants in an NSF-funded Research Experience for Undergraduates - Site project. The experimental problems being investigated by the user groups include developmental regulation of drosophila and tetrahymena gene expression, studies of thyroid hormone receptor m-RNA, and analysis of yeast mitochondria.