MRI/RUI: Acquisition of Instrumentation for a Proteomics and Functional Genomics Core Facility

在托德·桑德林博士(PI)和Toivo Kallas和Teri Shors博士(共同PI)的指导下，威斯康星大学奥什科什大学获得了一笔赠款。这笔赠款将使桑德林博士和他在威斯康星大学奥什科什分校以及包括里彭学院、劳伦斯大学、密歇根大学绿湾分校和圣诺伯特学院在内的几个地区学术机构的同事能够解决各种跨学科的研究问题。为实现这些目标，已为下列仪器提供资金：1)一维和二维凝胶分析的电泳仪，2)显示核酸和蛋白质凝胶并分析DNA微阵列的多功能荧光扫描仪/成像系统，以及3)用于鉴定和表征蛋白质的基质辅助激光解吸飞行时间质谱仪。核心设施对于推进该设施个人用户的研究项目至关重要，并将为学生提供令人兴奋的教育机会，如下所述。将在核心设施进行的研究的共同主题是通过基于蛋白质组学和功能基因组学的方法阐明复杂的生物和化学过程。包括桑德林博士、卡拉斯博士和约翰逊博士在内的微生物学家将以各种方式受益于核心设施。桑德林博士对金属及其形态对细菌金属耐药机制表达的影响感兴趣。卡拉斯博士将研究参与电子传输、信号转导、铁-硫簇组装和氧化损伤的蛋白质的结构/功能。约翰逊博士正在研究大肠杆菌中的一种全球调控因素。两位病毒学家，Hall博士和Shors博士，正在研究痘病毒蛋白(Shors)，并确定鼻病毒如何与哮喘相关基因相互作用(Hall)。细胞生物学家也将从中受益。沃恩将确定光诱导的视网膜退化对视网膜细胞蛋白质谱的影响。奥施勒博士正在研究与突触神经冲动传递有关的蛋白质表达。最后，对生物化学有研究兴趣的研究人员将受益。哈维博士正在研究使用荧光半导体纳米晶体进行生物分子监测。保尔森博士正在研究有丝分裂染色体的结构和生物化学。教育、教学和培训工作是该项目的另一个主要重点。新的仪器将增加学生在教育过程中获得的实验室实用技能的深度和广度。几门实验室课程(如微生物生理学、微生物遗传学、遗传学、免疫学/病毒学和生物技术)将从购买设备中受益。将开设新课程，包括一门名为《蛋白质组学导论》的课程。这些活动中的每一项都将为学生提供必要的技能，使他们成为未来有效的生命科学研究人员。拟议的活动对研究、教学、培训和学习的影响并不局限于威斯康星大学奥什科什校园社区。威斯康星州东北部的几个地区学术机构将可以使用该仪器，并将如上所述将其用于他们的研究工作。该基金将通过促进机构间和学科间的合作，加强威斯康星州东北部的研究基础设施。使用该设施肯定会吸引新的学生和教师研究人员。随着密歇根大学奥什科什分校更加注重将研究与教育相结合，该大学正在招聘具有丰富研究经验的新教师。蛋白质组学和功能基因组学核心设施对未来的教师来说将是一项有吸引力的资产，并将在招收新学生方面为大学提供竞争优势。特别是，该大学的女性科学、科学外展和大学预科项目将利用该设施吸引学生进入生命科学，并招募代表不足的群体的成员。

A grant has been awarded to the University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh under the direction of Dr. Todd Sandrin (PI) and Drs. Toivo Kallas and Teri Shors (co-PIs). The grant will enable Dr. Sandrin and his colleagues at UW - Oshkosh and at several area academic institutions including Ripon College, Lawrence University, UW - Green Bay, and St. Norbert College, to address a wide variety of interdisciplinary research problems. To accomplish these goals, funding has been provided for the following instrumentation: 1) electrophoresis equipment for one and two-dimensional gel analyses, 2) a versatile fluorescence scanner/imaging system to visualize nucleic acid and protein gels and to analyze DNA microarrays, and 3) a Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption - Time of Flight - Mass Spectrometer (MALDI-TOF-MS) to identify and characterize proteins. The Core Facility is critical to advancing the research projects of individual users of the facility and will provide exciting educational opportunities for students as described below. The common theme of the research that will be conducted in the Core Facility is the elucidation of complex biological and chemical processes through proteomics- and functional genomics-based approaches. Microbiologists, including Drs. Sandrin, Kallas, and Johnson, will benefit from the Core Facility in a variety of ways. Dr. Sandrin is interested in effects of metals and their speciation on expression of bacterial metal resistance mechanisms. Dr. Kallas will investigate the structure/function of proteins involved in electron transport, signal transduction, iron-sulfur cluster assembly, and oxidative damage. Dr. Johnson is characterizing a global regulatory factor in E. coli. Two virologists, Drs. Hall and Shors, are characterizing poxvirus proteins (Shors) and determining how the rhinovirus interacts with genes involved in asthma (Hall). Cell biologists will also benefit. Vaughan will determine the impact of light-induced retinal degeneration on protein profiles in retinal cells. Dr. Oschler is determining protein expression involved in synaptic neural impulse transmission. Finally, investigators with research interests in biochemistry will benefit. Dr. Hawi is investigating biomolecule monitoring using fluorescent semiconductor nanocrystals. Dr. Paulson is investigating the structure and biochemistry of mitotic chromosomes. Education, teaching and training efforts are an additional, major focus of the project. The new instrumentation will augment the depth and breadth of practical laboratory skills students acquire during their education. Several laboratory courses (e.g., in Microbial Physiology, Microbial Genetics, Genetics, Immunology/Virology, and Biotechnology) will benefit from acquisition of the equipment. New courses, including a course, entitled Introduction to Proteomics, will be offered. Each of these activities will provide students with the requisite skills to serve as tomorrow's effective life science researchers. The impacts of the proposed activity on research, teaching, training, and learning are not limited to the UW-Oshkosh campus community. Several area academic institutions in Northeastern Wisconsin will have access to the instrumentation and will use it for their research endeavors as described above. The Facility will enhance the infrastructure for research in Northeastern Wisconsin by fostering inter-institution and interdisciplinary collaborations. Access to the Facility will surely attract new student and faculty researchers. As UW-Oshkosh increases its focus on integrating research with education, the University is hiring new faculty with extensive research experience. The Proteomics and Functional Genomics Core Facility will be an attractive asset to prospective faculty and will provide the University with a competitive advantage in recruiting new students. In particular, the University's Women in Science, Science Outreach, and Pre-College Programs will use the Facility to attract students to the Life Sciences and for recruitment of members of underrepresented groups.