PURCHASE OF A MALDI-TOF MASS SPECTROMETER

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Support for purchasing matrix assisted laser desorption ionization time of flight mass spectrometer (MALDI-TOF-MS) which is essential to many NIH-funded research programs is requested. No MALDI-TOF-MS is available on the UC Irvine campus. Current research is being hindered by the lack of a MALDI-TOF system. This was demonstrated by the productivity gains that were made, and the experience gained, during the loan of a requested instrument is vital to the interests of three Schools at UCI: Physical Sciences, Biological Sciences and Medicine and will therefore be truly a shared inter-disciplinary instrument. Research projects of the major users include: (a) Shea, novel polymers, co-polymers, block polymers and ionomers, (b) Chamberlin, binding site determination for neuronal glutamate receptors; (c) Feher, novel dendritic compounds with peptidic and carbohydrate functionalities on a silsesquioxane core; (d) Glabe, amyloid protein and peptide structural characterization for Alzheimer's disease research; (e) Henschen, structure/function studies on normal and variant forms of fibrinogen; (f) Selsted, characterization and activity of novel peptidic antimicrobial agents; (g) Van Vranken, studies on chemical processes in protein aging. Aside from the major user group there are many other NIH funded research group who urgently require MALDI-TOF capability. The nature of the instrument to be purchased is such that it can be readily operated by the researcher but also that it will be fully exploited by placing it in a mass spectrometry facility with facility director who has over 20 years experience in mass spectrometry. The UCI mass spectrometry facility which comprises of two magnetic sector instruments is fully saturated providing analytical support for synthetic program (extract mass determinations) and other problem solving, particularly using LSIMS, direct probe, GC-MS and FD. The sample load for the two magnetic sector instruments is over 3,500 per year with the vast majority requiring extract mass determinations. UCI has a long-term major funding commitment to the mass spectrometry facility as well as the other analytical spectroscopy instrumentation facilities which support the research faculty. Currently the annual commitment is over $500,000 to these facilities in eight salaries and operational support. Additional operation funding is obtained through charges to the grants and contacts of the user community.