A laser-scanning system for radioisotope-labeled, multi-fluorescent, chemifluorescent and colorimetric imaging

需要资金购买一个通用的、最先进的激光扫描成像系统，供生物科学系的多个研究项目使用。该仪器是对现有扫描系统的替换和升级，现有扫描系统已变得无法操作和不起作用。该仪器具有广泛的适用性，可以通过磷成像(如P-32、S-35、C-14)探测放射性标记分子，并能用蓝、绿、红激光探测荧光信号，从而产生五个数量级信号的高精度图像或定量数据。该仪器的实验技术包括：基于放射性检测的生化分析和杂交印迹；基于荧光检测的Southern、Northern和Western印迹；来自10微米分辨率的玻璃片或微滴定板的荧光数据扫描；用于蛋白质组学应用的2D DGE(差示凝胶电泳法)；以及可见染色的凝胶(考马斯蓝、银)的定量。这8个应用实验室在RNA生物学(第二组内含子和逆转录酶)、结构生物学(病毒聚合酶)、植物代谢(天然生物产物化学)、植物生理学(细胞信号、生长)、酵母细胞生物学(细胞壁结构和合成)、发育生物学(小鼠肢体发育)、干细胞生物学(蠕虫生殖系分化)和癌症生物学(乳腺干细胞)等领域拥有相当不同的研究项目。预计大楼和系中的更多实验室将使用该仪器，因为它具有很强的通用性和许多研究目的的适用性。

Funds are requested to purchase a general-purpose, state-of-the-art laser scanning imaging system, to be used by multiple research programs in the Department of Biological Sciences. The instrument is a replacement and upgrade of an existing scanning system that has become inoperable and nonfunctional. The proposed instrument has broad applicability for many research purposes, being capable of detecting radiolabeled molecules through phosphorimaging (e.g., P-32, S-35, C-14), and detecting fluorescence signals with blue, green or red lasers, thereby producing images or quantitating data with high accuracy over five orders of magnitude of signal. Experimental techniques enabled by the instrument include the following: biochemical assays and hybridization blots based on radioactive detection; Southern, northern and western blots based on fluorescence detection, scanning of fluorescence data from glass slides or microtiter plates with a resoution of 10 micrometers; 2D DIGE (differential gel electrophoresis) for proteomic applications; and quantitation of visibly stained gels (Coomassie blue, silver). The eight applying labs have quite diverse research programs in the fields of RNA biology (group II introns and reverse transcriptases), structural biology (viral polymerases), plant metabolism (natural bioproduct chemistry), plant physiology (cell signaling, growth), yeast cell biology (cell wall structure and synthesis), developmental biology (limb development of mice), stem cell biology (germ line differentiation in worm) and cancer biology (breast stem cells). Additional labs in the building and department are expected to utilize the instrument because of its great versatility and applicability for many research purposes.