Cell Grower : High-throughput measurements of microbial growths

监测微生物细胞生长是许多研究领域的核心，包括系统生物学、基因组学、进化、微生物生态学、酶动力学和晶体学，以及细菌和真菌病原体的研究。随着生命科学所有领域的通量增加，单个实验通常需要监测数十到数百种细菌或真菌菌株。我们要求获得资金以获得微生物生长监测平台，该平台允许在摇摇或静止液体培养中同时跟踪多达4,600个种群的生长，并在典型模式微生物遇到的广泛温度范围内（5C至40℃）。该仪器是全自动的，可以在数小时到数天的时间内连续实时读取培养光密度。这允许测量三个参数，这是关键的微生物种群动态：滞后期，分裂时间和实现生物量。该仪器将是在上述领域进行前沿研究的8个研究小组的关键。该仪器将直接培养9名研究助理，16名博士后，31名研究生和5名本科生，他们的项目依赖于微生物细胞生长监测。该仪器将安装在拉瓦尔大学生物综合与系统研究所，供20多个实验室和100多名从本科生到高级博士后研究员和研究助理的高素质人员使用。该仪器将是培训下一代生物学家设计和分析大规模实验的绝佳机会，这些技能在整个生命科学领域的需求日益增加。

Monitoring microbial cell growth is central to many fields of research, including systems biology, genomics, evolution, microbial ecology, enzyme kinetics and crystallography as well as the study of bacterial and fungal pathogens. With the increase in throughput in all the fields of life-sciences, a single experiment typically requires the monitoring of tens to hundreds of bacterial or fungal strains. We request funds to acquire a microbial growth monitoring platform that allows to follow the growth of up to 4,600 populations simultaneously in shaking or still liquid cultures and across the wide-range of temperatures encountered by typical model microbes (5C to 40C). The instrument is fully automated and allows to read culture optical densities continuously and in real-time over periods of hours to days. This allow to measure three parameters that are key to microbial population dynamics: lag-phase, division time and achieved biomass. The instrument will be key to 8 research teams that are performing cutting edge research in the fields described above. The instrument will be used to directly train 9 research associates, 16 postdoctoral fellows, 31 graduate students and 5 undergraduate students whose projects rely in the monitoring of microbial cell growth. The instrument will be installed at the Institut de Biologie Intégrative et des Systèmes of Université Laval where it will be made available to more than 20 laboratories and more than 100 highly qualified personnel from undergraduate students to senior postdoctoral fellows and research associates. The instrument will be a great opportunity to train the next generation of biologists on the design and analysis of large-scale experiments, which are skills that are increasingly in demand throughout the life-sciences.