Automated Compound Storage and Retrieval System

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PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT Vanderbilt University is requesting funds for the purchase of a Hamilton Verso M2 to replace our obsolete Brooks Universal Store (Unistore). The current system was purchased in 2008 through funding from the NIH's Molecular Library Screening Center Network (MLSCN) and has since provided compound management services to Vanderbilt investigators performing chemical biology research. The Unistore is a cornerstone of the Vanderbilt High-throughput Screening (VHTS) Core providing a long-term storage environment, rapid retrieval, and tracking mechanism for each compound sample, whether in a tube or multi-well plate. This has enabled our institution to operate on par with biotech and pharmaceutical companies in terms of quality and effectiveness. The VHTS Unistore holds approximately 200,000 0.7mL tubes, 2,500 4-mL vials, and 7,000 384-well plates - totaling over 2.5 million samples. These samples are categorized as large, chemically diverse screening collections, libraries of known biologically active compounds, and project-specific compounds. The former two represent the majority of the samples and are available to any Vanderbilt researcher as a fee-for-service distribution. This service dovetails to the HTS screening services that span early discovery (e.g. tool compound discovery) and translational (e.g. discovery of new clinically-relevant activity of known drugs) projects. The third category (project-specific compounds) are compounds associated with specific, investigator-driven hits-to-leads and lead optimization preclinical drug discovery projects. Currently, samples from 111 such projects are managed through our system. Over the past five years, an average of 20,170 individual samples and 1,064 compound plate replications per year were distributed to investigators. The ability to quickly, efficiently and effectively support the demands of the Vanderbilt research community critically depends on our automated, environmentally controlled compound storage and retrieval system with integrated laboratory information management (LIMS) system. Although the Unistore has been an outstanding piece of equipment, it is well past its life expectancy and requires extensive on-site vendor support. The availability of vendor support is increasingly limited as Brooks introduces newer models. Replacement of the system is crucial to ongoing NIH-funded, as well as emerging, research programs aimed at advancing basic and early translational research. We are requesting funds for a new automated compound storage and retrieval system that will serve Vanderbilt through the next decade. Mission critical features that the Verso will provide include 1) 2-D barcode level tracking of tube samples, 2) 1-D barcode level tracking of plate samples, 3) environmental control with a dry air source and -20 °C redundant compressor temperature control, 4) high-speed tube picking, 5) storage capacity library growth, and 6) an application program interface (API) allowing streamlined integration with the existing VHTS LIMS. The timely replacement of the obsolete Brooks system with the updated Verso will ensure continued service to presently funded projects while providing a means to grow this capability within Vanderbilt.