CORE--BASIC SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING

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The Basic Science and Engineering Core facility will make the following services available to the Division on Aging: 1) A Genome Scanning for DNA Markers Service will assist the geriatrician investigator with the identification of genomic sequences and DNA marker panels that are associated with the prevalent disease of late life. Specialized 2-D electrophoresis units will be provided. 2) A gene Identification and Characterization Services will enable the geriatrician/gerontologist to identify genes that are differentially expressed during aging and/or disease. Equipment for subtractive hybridization and PCR differential display techniques will be available. 3) An Oxidative DNA Damage Determination Service will allow the clinician investigator to determine the extent of oxidative DNA damage that is detectable in the blood or urine in a given patient. High performance liquid chromatography analysis will be available. 4) A Transgenic Animal Design Service will assist investigators in the design of transgenic mice using microinjection of DNA or gene targeting and homologous recombination. Access to the microinjection equipment or embryonic stem cell laboratory will be provided. 5) A Biological Data Acquisition Service provides recording devices for walking cadence, ECG and continuous blood pressure. It also loans transducers, amplifiers, and recorders for the monitoring of biological signals. 6) A Biological Signal Processing Service digitizes, displays and analyzes biological signals such as those obtained through service #5. Special software for the analysis of walking cadence, ECG, and blood pressure as well as general purpose software (for performing Fourier transforms, filtering, principal component analysis, and for calculating non-linear diagnostics such as Lyapunov exponents) will be provided. 7) An Image Acquisition Service provides research grade microscopy for cell biology projects that require high resolution imaging. This service also makes available video cameras and recorders for the study of patient gait and movement. 8) An Image Processing and Interpretation Service performs digital image processing of images such as those recorded by the image acquisition service, including image enhancement and filtering, image segmentation and pattern recognition, and 3-D reconstruction from microscopic optical serial sections.