Nusrat and Parkos Laboratories
Emory Epithelial Pathobiology Unit
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Core Facilities |
Image Analysis Core DIRECTOR: Asma Nusrat, M.D. PURPOSE: To provide Center members with access to state-of-the-art confocal microscopes and provide technical support.  OVERVIEW: The Image Analysis Core encompasses two state-of-the-art Zeiss LSM 510 confocal microscopes equipped with META detectors and Argon and HENE/3PMT lasers. One confocal microscope housed in the neuroscience department is additionally equipped with a Ti-sapphire laser for two-photon excitation microscopy and live tissue imaging in addition to UV lasers. The confocal microscopes are presently fully functional and funding from this grant will subsidize the user cost of this core facility. Both microscopes are presently being utilized by core members. In addition to the confocal microscope, the Image Analysis Core will provide a facility to generate frozen sections. A technician will oversee and manage the confocal microscope and core-related issues. This includes training of new users, troubleshooting, maintaining the schedule and payment structure set up for use of the confocal microscope. Scheduling of confocal microscope use will be done on a web-based calendar. The core has a billing system based on hourly use of the confocal microscope. More Details are available at: http://medicine.emory.edu/gi/ddrc/core_b.cfm Cell Culture and Monoclonal Antibody Core DIRECTOR: Charles Parkos, M.D., Ph.D. PURPOSE: To provide Center members with polarized epithelial cell culture on permeable supports and on other media, access to intestinal epithelial cell lines , assist in production of monoclonal antibodies and recombinant proteins/antigens.  OVERVIEW: Core C consists of two tissue culture-based components. One component provides participating investigators with polarized epithelial cells cultured on permeable supports (transwells) of varying diameters and pore sizes. This core functions as a highly specialized facility directed at meeting very specific and critical needs of participating epithelial cell biologists. Within the core, a number of intestinal epithelial cell lines are maintained in continuous culture for specific use in transwells. Access to epithelial cells cultured on transwells provides investigators with critical biological components that are labor-intensive to produce, costly and require a high level of technical expertise. In addition, the core serves as a repository for additional cell lines to be stored in liquid N2 and distributed free of charge to participating investigators as needed. Available epithelial cell lines include T84, HT29, Caco2, HCT116, IEC-6, MDCK, SK, ARPE, CMT,HL-60, goblet cells, Calu-3, Cos-1, Cos-7, CHO, and various clones of such. While culture of cells on permeable filters is a predominant function of the core, other critical services offered include culture of epithelial cells on a variety of other media such as glass coverslips, Petri-dishes at defined cell densities (for transfection, for example), expansion of (transfected ) cell lines and collection of media/cells for purification of recombinant proteins/antigens. Another major component of this core assists in the production of monoclonal antibodies to a varieity of antigens. This highly specialized service involves planning meetings with participating investigators laboratories, followed by immunization, fusion and screening to be perfomed in conjunction with the requesting PI. Hybridomas are then subcloned and, with instruction on hybridoma mainetenance, given back to the investiagor for futher characterization. This approach helps to maximize the numbers of hybridomas that can be produced in the core. More Details are available at: http://medicine.emory.edu/gi/ddrc/core_c.cfm |