SC COBRE: LIPIDOMICS CORE

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This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. The diversity ofr bioactive lipids and their interconnected metabolism provides a network of pathways regulating intra- and inter-cellular signaling and function. Dysfunction in these pathways contribute to the pathobiology of specific diseases such as cancer progression and metastasis, accelerated aging, inflammation, and fungal pathogenesis. This emphasized needs for developing lipid chemistry and analysis. The Lipidomics Core was created based on unique expertise of the key personnel in lipid chemistry, analysis and biology has evolved into an institutional, national, and even international resource that serves the needs of the research community in the field of Sphinglipids. The core provides conceptual and practical training in various aspects of lipidology, qualitative and quantitative analysis of lipid components from different biological materials (cells, tissue, biological fluids), synthetic molecular tools to study lipid metabolism (funtionalized and fluorescent ceramides, site-specific radioactive sphingolipids), diversified synthetic lipids and analogs for cellular, in vitro, and in vivo studies (organelle-targeting sphingolipids and organelle-targeting inhibitors of sphingolipid metabolizing enzymes), and assists investigators in experimental design, selection of lipid of interest and interpretation of the analytical results. Analytical approach is based on High Performance Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS) technology. Currently, we provide simultaneous analysis of sphingoid bases and their phosphates, ceramide species and their phosphates, sphingomyelin species and diacyl-glycerol species. Glucosylceramide is under a final developmental stage. Our goal is to reach metabolomic profile of sphingolipids. The core has been instrumental to the success of the COBRE PIs and in obtaining extramural funding for the two Program Project Grants and the award of a competitive shared instrument grant from NIH, which supported our second MS instrument. The core is engaged in several collaborative projects and provides also a paid fee-for-service.