MRI: Acquisition of a Liquid Chromatograph QToF Mass Spectrometer to Support Research and Training at Hofstra University

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An award is made to Hofstra University to support the acquisition of a liquid chromatograph quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometer (LC-MS) and a nitrogen generator. The acquisition brings the first high-resolution mass spectrometer to an academic institution in Nassau County (Pop: 1.36 million). LC-MS is an important analytical technique for separating and characterizing complex mixtures of chemical and biological molecules, and has broad applications across science and engineering. The instrument will be incorporated into multiple courses in the STEM curriculum at Hofstra University, providing undergraduates with exposure to this crucially important technology. Outside the classroom, students will receive in-depth training in LC-MS through faculty-guided research across four disciplines at Hofstra and nearby Adelphi University and the State University of New York – Old Westbury. Hofstra and its partner institutions successfully recruit and train diverse student bodies through a variety of community outreach and support programs. Experience with cutting edge LC-MS instrumentation will benefit that diverse group of students when they seek employment or pursue graduate studies in STEM fields. The new LC-MS will greatly enhance research capabilities in biology, biochemistry, and biotechnology. Research projects enabled by the instrument vary widely, from studying the occurrence and transformation of pollutants in environmental systems, to characterizing chemical modifications in RNA/protein complexes essential to mRNA transport. The instrument will be used to conduct proteomic analyses of protein export in polymicrobial communities and for metabolomic analyses of plant-microbe interactions of beachgrass and grapevines. It will be used to characterize newly synthesized molecules for studying fatty acid recycling and for investigating new approaches for carbon-carbon bond formation. The instrument will also be used for analyzing protein derivatization in the osteodifferentiation of stem cells and the dephosphorylation of signaling networks involved in cancer development. The results of these research efforts will be disseminated by students and faculty at scientific conferences, symposia, and in peer-reviewed publications.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.