Cytek 3-laser Aurora

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PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT The West Virginia University (WVU) Flow Cytometry & Single Cell Core Facility (FCSCCF) is a centralized institutional shared research resource facility that serves the research community at WVU and other regional institutions. The WVU FCSCCF operates in accordance with best practices in operations and management for institutional shared research facilities. Services are driven by the needs of the users’ NIH-funded projects in biomedical research in 4 primary areas:1) investigator-initiated grants (R01 and R21), 2) grants from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) Center of Biomedical Research Excellence (CoBRE P20 GM121322 and P20 GM109098), 3) NIGMS supported Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI, U54 GM104942), and 4) NIGMS supported Idea Network for Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE P20 GM103434) programs. Currently, two flow cytometers are available to researchers using the WVU FCSCCF: 1) a 4-laser Becton Dickinson (BD) LSRFortessa analytic flow cytometer, purchased with an NIH S10 grant (awarded in 2013) and 2) a 4-laser BD FACSAria III cell sorter, purchased in 2017 with funds from the WV CTSI. High usage of the LSRFortessa has caused some researchers to analyze their samples on the more expensive and slower FACSAria III cell sorter, which increases the time and cost of their research. In 2019, billed usage for analytical samples was 85.6% of the accessible users time (AUT) (1189.4 hr (71.5% AUT) on the LSRFortessa and 235.8 hr (14.2% AUT) on the FACS Aria III). In the past year, two users have needed to detect more than the maximum of 17 fluorochromes that the LSRFortessa can detect in a single sample and have been sending samples to the University of Virginia’s flow cytometry core for analysis on a Cytek Aurora. By sending samples to another institution, researchers incur a higher cost and longer lag times between sample collection and data analysis. Additionally, several WVU FCSCCF users study rare cell populations, which is particularly challenging when users are forced to analyze samples on the FACSAria III. After evaluating several analytical flow cytometers, we determined that the Cytek 3-laser Aurora has the best combination of features to meet the WVU FCSCCF users’ current and anticipated needs. Addition of the Cytek flow cytometer will support our NIH-funded investigators by increasing access to cutting edge technology and reducing wait time and costs, thereby increasing competitiveness.