Acquisition of a Fluorescence-Activated Cell Sorter (FACS)

荧光激活细胞分选(FACS)是一项功能强大的技术，它允许根据选定的个体特征直接询问和分离悬液中的大量单个细胞。例如，细胞大小以及各种各样的细胞特征可以被测量，前提是每个被研究的性状可以关联到不同的荧光信号。然后，表现出有趣特征的细胞可以从种群的其余部分分离出来，并迅速存放在适当的容器中，要么单独存放，要么成批存放。直到最近，细胞分选还需要非常昂贵(通常为50万美元)的仪器，操作起来也相对复杂。相比之下，所要求的Bio-Rad S3E细胞分选机价格实惠，操作简单。尽管该仪器最多允许监测四种颜色，这比大多数细胞分选机要少，但这种配置足以满足我们实验室中绝大多数(&gt；95%)的实验需求。我们申请资金购买舍布鲁克大学主校区没有的这台仪器，以支持我们在许多领域的研究，包括单细胞基因组学、靶向转录学、细胞生物学和遗传学。该仪器对我们的研究项目至关重要，在平台协调员的监督下，将支持许多新项目，并有助于培训来自几个实验室的高素质人员。

Fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS) is a powerful technology allowing very large populations of single cells from a suspension to be directly interrogated and isolated based on selected individual characteristics. For instance, cell size along with a wide variety of cell features can be measured provided that a distinct fluorescent signal can be associated with each investigated trait. Cells that display interesting characteristics can then be separated from the rest of the population and quickly deposited in an appropriate container either individually or in bulk. Until recently, cell sorting required very expensive (often >$500,000) instruments that were also relatively complex to operate. In contrast, the requested Bio-Rad S3E cell sorter is affordable and simple to run. Although this instrument allows a maximum of four colors to be monitored, which is less than most cell sorters, this configuration is sufficient for the vast majority (>95%) of experimental needs in our laboratories. We request funding to purchase this instrument, that is otherwise unavailable on the main campus of the Université de Sherbrooke, to support our research in many fields including single-cell genomics, targeted transcriptomics, cell biology and genetics. This instrument is essential for our research programs, and will, under the supervision of a platform coordinator, enable many new projects as well as contribute to the training of highly qualified personnel from several laboratories.