MRI: Acquisition: MALDI-TOF/TOF Mass Spectrometer for Multidisciplinary Research and Teaching at an Undergraduate College for Women

MRI：获取：MALDI-TOF/TOF 质谱仪，用于女子本科学院的多学科研究和教学

• 批准号: 1126119
• 负责人: Didem Vardar Ulu
• 金额: $ 39.82万
• 依托单位: Wellesley College
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2011
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2011-09-01 至 2016-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1126119&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: MRI; Acquisition; MALDI; TOF; Mass

A grant has been awarded to Wellesley College under the direction of Dr. Vardar-Ulu to acquire a Bruker Daltonics Autoflex Speed MALDI-TOF/TOF mass spectrometer, with the capability for MS/MS Peptide sequencing, MALDI imaging, and matrix-free targets for small molecule analysis for interdisciplinary research at an undergraduate college. A mass spectrometer is an instrument that can very accurately determine the mass of intact proteins, fragments of proteins (peptides) or even their building blocks (amino acids). In the past ten years, mass spectroscopy has become the method of choice for biologists, biological chemists, and chemists studying the structural and functional features of large molecules. Since the acquisition of the first mass spectrometer Omniflex MALDI-TOF in 2003 (also acquired through the NSF-MRI program), mass spectrometry has become a key element in the research programs of many of the Wellesley College faculty and has been impetus for the development of discovery-based teaching laboratories for several courses at the college. However, this instrument is now a discontinued platform that can no longer meet the current research and training needs of the faculty and students. This new instrument will not only enhance the existing research capabilities, but also provide additional capabilities for new research in this rapidly advancing field. The goal of this project is to allow undergraduate students and faculty from several departments both within and outside the college to engage in collaborative efforts to address important research questions in biology, chemistry, and neuroscience. As summarized below, the described projects are very diverse in their scope and will utilize many of the new features of this instrument as well as its routine uses. Several projects involve organisms whose genomes have been solved and will use the MALDI-TOF to identify novel proteins within interacting complexes, while others will benefit from the additional new capabilities this instrument offers such as protein sequencing and MALDI Imaging. Project 1 (chemistry) will use MS to identify the exact cleavage site from the potential autolysis of a crucial signaling molecule (Notch protein) while Project 2 (Biology) will verify phosphorylation sites within Saccharomyces cerevisiae proteins that specifically require cytoplasmic mitotic cyclins for phosphorylation. Projects 3 (biology), 5 (chemistry), 7 (neuroscience) will use MS to identify proteins that interact with the blue light receptors PHOT1 and PHOT2 in leaves of Arabidopsis thaliana, intracellular targets of histone-derived antimicrobial peptides, and novel proteins in the steroid receptor complex from female mouse brain, respectively. Project 4 (Biology) will use the new MALDI imaging feature to image the internal tissues of insects while project 6 (chemistry and biology) will use it to demonstrate the feasibility of using gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) as targeted vehicles for biomedical research. There are also specific plans to enhance the curricular uses for the instrument in the undergraduate lab settings at both intermediate and advanced levels through a discovery-based laboratory in proteomics, as well as in organic chemistry and biochemistry. The scientific merit of these projects and their focus on the teaching and research training of female undergraduates, speaks directly to the intellectual merit of this proposal. Wellesley's productive record in the education of women scientists, along with its recent progress in attracting more underrepresented minorities to the sciences, bodes well for the sustained and broad impact of this instrumentation on research and training, and justifies its acquisition as a critical investment in the next generation of scientists. The encouragement of talented young women to choose careers in the sciences will ultimately strengthen the infrastructure of the scientific community in the United States and yield benefits to all members of our society. The primary mission at Wellesley College is the undergraduate education of women who will make a difference in the world. This commitment has taken on a special meaning in the sciences where women have traditionally been underrepresented. The permanent faculty of 14 in the Department of Biological Sciences, 12 in Chemistry and 4 in the Neuroscience program maintain high standards for both research and research training for undergraduates with extramural funding supporting productive research programs that also are focused on training undergraduate students. Therefore, the mass spectrometer will not only have an impact on research training, but will also enhance the research environment for a high proportion of our faculty. The results of these research efforts will be broadly disseminated via abstracts, reviewed publications and by active participation of students and faculty at professional meetings. The benefit to society as a whole will be the increased participation of women in the scientific community of the United States and increased scientific literacy in the population.

在Vardar-Ulu博士的指导下，韦尔斯利学院获得了一笔赠款，用于购买Bruker Daltonics Autoflex Speed MALDI-TOF/TOF质谱仪，该质谱仪能够进行MS/MS肽测序、MALDI成像和无基质靶标小分子分析，用于本科院校的跨学科研究。质谱仪是一种可以非常准确地确定完整蛋白质，蛋白质片段（肽）甚至其构建块（氨基酸）质量的仪器。在过去的十年中，质谱已成为生物学家，生物化学家和化学家研究大分子结构和功能特征的首选方法。自2003年收购第一台质谱仪Omniflex MALDI-TOF（也通过NSF-MRI计划收购）以来，质谱已成为韦尔斯利学院许多教师研究计划的关键要素，并推动了学院几门课程基于发现的教学实验室的发展。然而，该仪器现在是一个停产的平台，不再能满足教师和学生目前的研究和培训需求。 这一新仪器不仅将增强现有的研究能力，而且还将为这一迅速发展的领域的新研究提供额外的能力。 该项目的目标是让大学内外的几个部门的本科生和教师参与合作，以解决生物学，化学和神经科学中的重要研究问题。 如下所述，所述项目的范围非常广泛，将利用这一工具的许多新功能及其日常用途。 有几个项目涉及的生物体的基因组已经解决，并将使用MALDI-TOF来识别相互作用复合物中的新蛋白质，而其他项目将受益于该仪器提供的额外新功能，如蛋白质测序和MALDI成像。 项目1（化学）将使用MS从关键信号分子（Notch蛋白）的潜在自溶中确定确切的切割位点，而项目2（生物学）将验证酿酒酵母蛋白内的磷酸化位点，这些位点特别需要细胞质有丝分裂细胞周期蛋白进行磷酸化。 项目3（生物学），5（化学），7（神经科学）将使用MS来识别与拟南芥叶片中的蓝光受体PHOT 1和PHOT 2相互作用的蛋白质，组蛋白衍生的抗菌肽的细胞内靶点，以及雌性小鼠大脑中类固醇受体复合物中的新蛋白质。 项目4（生物学）将使用新的MALDI成像功能对昆虫的内部组织进行成像，而项目6（化学和生物学）将使用它来证明使用金纳米粒子（AuNPs）作为生物医学研究的靶向载体的可行性。也有具体的计划，以提高课程使用的仪器在本科实验室设置在中级和高级水平，通过发现为基础的实验室在蛋白质组学，以及在有机化学和生物化学。这些项目的科学价值及其对女大学生教学和研究培训的关注直接说明了这一建议的智力价值。韦尔斯利在女科学家教育方面卓有成效的记录，沿着它最近在吸引更多未被充分代表的少数民族进入科学领域方面取得的进展，预示着这种仪器对研究和培训的持续和广泛的影响，并证明它的收购是对下一代科学家的关键投资。 鼓励有才华的年轻妇女选择科学职业，最终将加强美国科学界的基础设施，并使我们社会的所有成员受益。韦尔斯利学院的主要使命是为那些将在世界上有所作为的女性提供本科教育。这一承诺在传统上妇女代表性不足的科学领域具有特殊意义。 生物科学系14名，化学系12名，神经科学系4名永久教师保持高标准的研究和研究培训，为本科生提供校外资金支持生产性研究项目，这些项目也专注于培养本科生。因此，质谱仪不仅会对研究培训产生影响，而且还将为我们的高比例教师改善研究环境。这些研究工作的结果将通过摘要，审查出版物和学生和教师在专业会议的积极参与广泛传播。对整个社会的好处将是增加妇女在美国科学界的参与，提高人口的科学素养。