Acquisition of a MALDI-TOFTOF Mass Spectrometer for Wisconsin Researchers

在威斯康星大学麦迪逊分校和全州的其他大学，有一千多名教师在生命科学领域进行研究。许多这类研究的基础是对构成生物体的细胞、组织和器官进行质谱辅助的蛋白质组学分析。威斯康星大学麦迪逊分校生物技术中心质谱/蛋白质组学设施成立于1998年，是一个集中的设施，目的是获取质谱仪，并以收费服务的方式向研究界提供。自成立以来的六年里，它已经成功地满足了近百家不同学术实验室的蛋白质组学需求，成本效益高，质量高。然而，研究人员使用这种设备的一个主要缺陷是无法从非常小的组织样本中获得蛋白质序列，这是生物学研究的一个常见障碍。第二个限制是常规使用同位素辅助串联质谱法进行定量差异蛋白质组学实验的能力。基于maldi的串联质谱仪通常被称为MALDI-TOFTOF，是一种能够解决这两个问题的独特仪器。令人惊讶的是，在该州没有一个MALDI-TOFTOF可用。目前，威斯康辛州的研究人员必须开车/飞到芝加哥或波士顿才能获得宝贵的仪器时间。缺乏现成的本地工具，阻碍了我们的研究人员获得将基因组序列“数据”转化为对生命过程的真正理解所需的关键信息。该奖项的目的是获得该仪器，并使其可供全州的学术研究人员使用。该仪器将被放置在现有的UWBC核心质谱/蛋白质组学设备中，以确保(i)它将被大量使用，（ii）它将被大量使用，（iii）它将被很好地维护，以获得最佳的灵敏度和整体可靠性。这个项目的广泛影响是多方面的。首先，研究用户代表了大量不同的学科，从动物/食品科学到工程，从益生元化学到“传统的”分子、细胞和有机体生物学领域。在操作昂贵和复杂的质谱仪方面的六年经验确保了这个MALDI-TOFTOF的操作将是组织良好的，整个社区都可以获得和负担得起。此外，该大学还努力确保UWBC的核心设施，特别是质谱/蛋白质组学，在各级教育中得到利用，包括本科生和高中，无论是在当地还是在威斯康星州代表性不足的社区，如密尔沃基的经济贫困学校和威斯康星州北部小社区的美洲原住民印第安人。该仪器将推进发现和促进教学，并普遍加强学术基础设施，不仅在威斯康星大学麦迪逊分校，而且在整个州。

At the University of Wisconsin-Madison and in other universities throughout the state, there are over a thousand faculty performing research within the life sciences. Fundamental to many of these studies is a mass spectrometric-assisted proteomic analysis of the cells, tissues and organs that make up the organisms. The UW -Madison Biotechnology Center Mass Spectrometry/Proteomic Facility was established in 1998 as a centralized facility for the purpose of acquiring mass spectrometers and making them available to the research community on a fee-for-service basis. During the six years since inception, it has proven successful in meeting the proteomic needs of nearly one hundred different academic laboratories in a cost effective, top quality manner. However, a major deficiency for investigators using this facility has been the inability to obtain protein sequence from very small samples of tissue, a common handicap of biological research. A second limitation is the ability to routinely perform quantitative differential proteomic experiments using isotope-assisted tandem mass spectrometry. The MALDI-based tandem mass spectrometer known commonly as a MALDI-TOFTOF is an instrument that is uniquely capable to address both of these problems. Surprisingly, there is not a single MALDI-TOFTOF available in the state. Wisconsin researchers currently must drive/fly to Chicago or Boston to obtain precious instrument time. Lack of ready access to this instrument locally has hindered our researchers in obtaining the critical information needed for converting genomic sequence 'data' into a real understanding of life processes. The purpose of this award is to acquire this instrument and make it available to academic researchers statewide. The instrument will be placed within the existing UWBC Core Mass Spectrometry/Proteomics Facility, ensuring that (i) it will be accessible to a large diverse group of researchers, (ii) that it will heavily used and (iii) that it will be well maintained for optimal sensitivity and overall reliability. The broader impacts of this project are several-fold. First, the research users represent a large number of different academic disciplines, from Animal/Food Science to Engineering to Prebiotic Chemistry to the 'traditional' Molecular, Cellular and Organismal Biology areas. Six years of prior experience in operating expensive and sophisticated mass spectrometers ensures that the operation of this MALDI-TOFTOF will be well organized, accessible and affordable for the entire community. In addition, the university has strived to ensure that the UWBC core facilities in general, and the Mass Spectrometry/Proteomics in particular, are utilized for education at all levels, including undergraduates and high schools, both locally and in Wisconsin communities with underrepresented groups, such as economically impoverished schools in Milwaukee and Native American Indians in small communities of northern Wisconsin. This instrument will advance discovery and promote teaching and generally enhance the academic infrastructure, not only at UW-Madison, but also, all over the state.