Multiple Peptide Synthesizer - An Integrated System

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Support is requested for an automated solid-phase peptide synthesizer, preparative high-performance liquid chromatography equipment dedicated to peptide purification, and a vacuum concentrator for drying solvents used during synthesize and purification. This integrated system of instruments for producing synthetic peptides will replace aging ten-year-old equipment that is now unsupported by the manufacturer. The selected synthesizer, a Rainin Symphony/Multiplex with the Cascade Combinatorial Reactor, is a multiple peptide synthesizer that can synthesize up to twelve peptides simultaneously and independently, allowing us to better meet increased demands for synthetic peptides for NIH-funded researchers at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB). The beneficiary users of the requested equipment include a multidisciplinary group of fourteen predominantly NIH-supported investigators (9 major and 5 minor users; 22 funded NIB grants totaling $4 million dollars annual direct costs) representing several clinical and basic science departments at UTMB, e.g. Human Biological Chemistry and Genetics, Microbiology and Immunology, Pediatrics, Pathology, Anatomy and Neuroscience, as well as Internal Medicine. Examples of diseases under investigation by these synthetic peptide users include those involving or related to muscular dystrophy, allergy, asthma, cancer, xenobiotics, environmental toxicology, mutagenesis, and gastroenterology. The Peptide Synthesis Core is one of five cores within the UTMB Protein Chemistry Laboratory; the others are the Protein/DNA Sequencing, the Proteomics, the Mass Spectrometry, and the Protein Expression Cores. Together, these core facilities provide a wide range of services for the entire University campus including multiple campus research centers. Acquisition of the requested instrumentation will significantly enhance the ability of NIH-funded investigators to conduct their ongoing hypothesis-driven research and, moreover, will extend their research opportunities in the future to higher levels of productivity and scientific impact.