Acquistion of a ClonePix FL System

描述（由申请人提供）：本申请要求资金购买专用ClonePix FL系统（Genetix Ltd.）自动筛选和选择分泌单克隆抗体的杂交瘤细胞系。仪器将由范德比尔特单克隆抗体中心（VMAC）存放和操作，以支持几个主要的范德比尔特用户，包括范德比尔特-英格拉姆癌症中心（VICC）、Jim Ayers癌前检测和诊断研究所、范德比尔特疫苗中心、胃肠道癌症卓越研究特别计划（GI-孢子）、人类癌症联盟小鼠模型（MMHCC）、范德比尔特化学生物学研究所（VICB）以及范德比尔特大学医学中心（VUMC）内的广泛研究计划。这些用户中的绝大多数参与了NIH支持的癌症或其他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、质谱和靶向治疗等发现领域的加速成功（见附录中的研究计划和共享资源），对新mAb的需求激增，VMAC无法处理的活性明显增加。目前的积压将近三个月，预计明年的需求可能会延长到六个月以上。主要的瓶颈是产生和筛选杂交瘤细胞系以鉴定所需克隆的劳动密集型任务。ClonePix系统通过自动化该过程的大部分方面来显著提高生产力。去年，VMAC在两名技术人员加班加点的情况下完成了28次融合。ClonePix系统将使这些人能够每年进行多达100次融合，同时减少手工时间。 公共卫生相关性：单克隆抗体在用于研究和治疗癌症的广泛研究和临床应用中是至关重要的工具。VMAC的一个关键作用是通过使这些关键试剂价格低廉、易于制造，并随时可供范德比尔特研究和医疗保健界使用，来加速健康和癌症研究多个领域的进展。本申请中描述的仪器是这一使命的核心，也是VMAC满足范德比尔特对这些关键研究工具需求的能力所必需的。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This application requests funds to purchase a dedicated ClonePix FL system (Genetix Ltd.) to automate the screening and selection of monoclonal antibody-secreting hybridoma cell lines. 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), Jim Ayers Institute for Precancer Detection and Diagnosis, Vanderbilt Vaccine Center, Special Program of Research Excellence in Gastrointestinal Cancer (GI- SPORE), Mouse Models of Human Cancer Consortium (MMHCC), Vanderbilt Institute of Chemical Biology (VICB), and a wide spectrum of research programs within the Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC). The vast majority of these users are involved in cancer- or other health-related research efforts supported by NIH. Over the past ten years, Vanderbilt has built one of the finest Core Facility Networks in the country. Accelerated success in discovery areas such as proteomics, mass spectrometry, and targeted therapeutics (see Research Programs and Shared Resources in appendix) has generated an explosion in demand for new mAb's and significantly more activity than the VMAC can handle. The current backlog is almost three months and the projected demand for next year could extend delays to over six months. The main bottleneck is the labor-intensive task of generating and screening hybridoma cell lines to identify desired clones. The ClonePix system dramatically increases productivity by automating most aspects of this process. Last year, the VMAC topped out at 28 fusions with two technicians working significant overtime. The ClonePix system will enable these individuals to perform as many as ~100 fusions/year while reducing hands on time. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: 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 and essential for the VMAC's ability to meet Vanderbilt demand for these critical research tools.