Microarray Scanner and Accessories for MUSC

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): High throughput analysis of gene expression through the use of DNA microarray technology has become established as a powerful tool for biomedical research. Its applications are broad, ranging from sequencing and characterization of single nucleotide polymorphisms, to diagnosis of biological or pathogenic phenotypes, and to the transcriptomic profiling of biological samples. The Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) DNA Microarray and Bioinformatics Facility was established in 2001 to provide investigators from MUSC and other South Carolina institutions with a comprehensive infrastructure comprised of faculty, support staff, state-of-the-art instrumentation and advanced computational/statistical analysis resources required to perform DNA microarray analysis. To date, this facility has been implemented in over 30 research projects, including those of 18 NIH-funded investigators in South Carolina. However, new advances in microarray technology, the demand for even higher levels of throughput screening, and the imminent obsolescence of our present microarray instrumentation necessitate the acquisition of new instrumentation in order to facilitate ongoing and future microarray experimentation at MUSC. This proposal will outline the current importance of microarray technology to MUSC investigators, the limitations of existing microarray instrumentation at MUSC, and the necessity for replacing this instrumentation as well as adding additional technical capabilities. Specifically, funds are requested for purchasing an Affymetrix GeneChip Scanner 3000 Upgrade and a Fluidics Station 450 Upgrade.