Acquisition of an AKTAxpress MAb System

描述(由申请人提供)：本申请申请资金购买专用高通量层析系统(GE Healthcare AKTAxpress MAb)，以自动化和标准化单抗(MAbs)的纯化。该仪器将由Vanderbilt单抗核心(VMAC)容纳和操作，以支持Vanderbilt的几个主要用户，包括Vanderbilt-Ingram癌症中心(VICC)、两个卓越研究特别计划(胃肠道和乳腺癌孢子)、斑马鱼和非洲爪哇联盟，以及Vanderbilt大学医学中心(VUMC)内的一系列研究计划，这些计划使用VMAC来生成和纯化单抗，用于NIH赞助的研究。这些用户中的绝大多数都参与了癌症或其他与健康相关的研究工作。在过去的十年里，范德比尔特建立了全国最好的核心设施网络之一。在蛋白质组学、质谱学和靶向治疗等发现领域取得的巨大成功(请参阅附录中的研究计划和共享资源)导致了对VMAC服务的需求激增。反过来，在我们为主要用户提供纯化抗体的能力方面，出现了一个关键的瓶颈。为了满足不断增长的总体需求和与治疗应用相关的更高标准，产量和质量控制方面的实质性改进是必要的。所要求的设备将满足这些需要，并将关键人员的时间腾出用于不能轻易实现自动化的工作。重要的是，NIH资助的研究人员在一年内节省的资金(超过50万美元)可能会大大超过VMAC设施的整个年度预算。在研究和治疗癌症的广泛研究和临床应用中，单抗是至关重要的重要工具。VMAC的一个关键作用是通过使这些关键试剂廉价、易于制造并随时提供给Vanderbilt研究和医疗保健社区来加快健康和癌症研究的多个领域的进展。本申请书中描述的仪器是这项任务的核心。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This application requests funds to purchase a dedicated high throughput chromatography system (GE Healthcare AKTAxpress MAb) to automate and standardize the purification of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs). The instrument will be housed and operated by the Vanderbilt Monoclonal Antibody Core (VMAC) in support of several major Vanderbilt users, including the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC), two Special Programs of Research Excellence (Gastrointestinal and Breast Cancer SPOREs), the Zebrafish and Xenopus Consortia, and a wide spectrum of research programs within the Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) that use the VMAC to generate and purify mAbs for NIH-sponsored research. The vast majority of these users are involved in cancer- or other health-related research efforts. Over the past ten years, Vanderbilt has built one of the finest Core Facility Networks in the country. Enormous success in discovery areas such as proteomics, mass spectrometry, and targeted therapeutics (see Research Programs and Shared Resources in appendix) has lead to an explosion in demand for VMAC services. In turn, a critical bottleneck has developed with respect to our ability to provide purified antibodies for our major users. Substantial improvement in both throughput and quality control are necessary to meet the increased overall demand and the higher standards associated with therapeutic applications. The requested equipment will meet these needs and free up time of key personnel for efforts that cannot be readily automated. Importantly, the savings in a single year to NIH-funded researchers (over $500,000) could significantly exceed the entire yearly budget for the VMAC facility. Monoclonal antibodies are critically important tools in a broad range of research and clinical applications used to study and treat cancer. A key role of the VMAC is to accelerate progress in multiple areas of health and cancer research by making these crucial reagents inexpensive, easy to make, and readily available to the Vanderbilt research and healthcare community. The instrument described in this application is central to this mission.