Other Core Facilities

The Flow Cytometry Facility is a core laboratory located on the third floor of the School of Veterinary Medicine building on the campus of Louisiana State University. The School of Veterinary Medicine has operated the Flow Cytometry Facility since 1986. The facility features a Becton Dickinson FACScan flow cytometer capable of measuring two light scatter parameters and three fluorescence emissions. Immunophenotyping, cell cycle analysis, apoptosis studies, and measurements of cellular function are examples of applications which are performed routinely in this laboratory. This unique centralized facility provides analytical capabilities for investigators throughout the Louisiana State University System, including the LSU Agricultural Center and LSU Pennington Biomedical Research Center. Both PC and Macintosh computers are utilized in data acquisition and analysis and are all connected to the Veterinary Medicine and LSU networks. Recently, the Facility purchased a new Becton Dickinson FACS Aria flow cytometer measures up to 9 parameters including two light scatter parameters and seven fluorescence emissions. The instrument is equipped with 2 lasers, a 488 nm Coherent Sapphire solid state and a 633 nm JDS Uniphase HeNe, allowing various combinations of fluorochromes for multi color immunophenotyping and cell functional assays. In addition, the cytometer can perform high speed, dual-laser sorts and has 4 way cell sorting capacity. The Aria is interfaced with a workstation that includes an HP X4000 PC computer running Becton Dickinson FACSDiVa based software for data acquisition and analysis.

The SVM Microscopy Center is a core laboratory located on the third floor of the School of Veterinary Medicine. The Microscopy Center is a central service of the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine providing micro-imaging support for research and instruction. The facility houses transmission (Zeiss EM 10-C) and environmental scanning electron (FEI Quanta 200) microscopes as well as cryofixation, freeze-fracture, and metal shadowing facilities. Four computer coupled light microscopes are available to provide a variety of contrasting methods and fluorescence imaging capabilities. The inverted fluorescence microscope has a heated stage with flo-through culture chambers available on demand. Laser micro-dissection-capture (P.A. LoM) System integrated with a Zeiss inverted microscope) is also available in the Center. The center possesses both software and hardware capabilities in morphometric analysis, image enhancement, image analysis, video microscopy, and both digital and photographic image recording and printing. Two dedicated graphics workstations are available as are a variety of printers (ink jet, laser and dye sublimation) and scanners (flatbed and dedicated transparency). Technical support, consultation, and training are available for all equipment. Peptide Synthesis. Peptides will be synthesized in the Protein Synthesis laboratory located in the department of Chemistry at LSU, BR. This Core Laboratory offers custom peptide synthesis and characterization of peptides. Fmoc chemistry with Applied Biosystems Synergy 432A instruments is used. Standard syntheses are carried out at 25 pmole scale at chain lengths up to 31 amino acids with the choice of either free carboxyl or amide at the C-terminus. Synthetic peptides are furnished in cleaved and deprotected form as lyophilized powders. Analytical HPLC characterization is supplied as part of the basic service. Optional product characterization offered includes mass spectrophotometry, using MALDI-TOF, and amino acid analysis. Purification by HPLC is also available at either an analytic scale (1-2 mg column load) or at preparative scale (up to 100 mg column load).

The Analytical Systems Laboratory : The Analytical Systems Laboratories are central service, comprehensive analytical laboratories, consisting of The Laboratory for Residue Studies, The Equine Medication Surveillance Laboratory and The Analytical Systems Laboratory. The Laboratory for Residue Studies was established in 1991 and provides instrumentation and expertise for the performance of drug and biological molecule pharmacokinetics, metabolism, tissue distribution and analytical method development. The laboratory is also equipped to conduct complete drug profiling using radiolabeled test materials. These laboratories operate under Federal Good Laboratory Practices regulations and have generated data for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and private industry for submission for veterinary drug approvals. The Equine Medication Surveillance Laboratory was established in 1987 and has served as the official laboratory for the Louisiana State Racing Commission since that time. The laboratory screens over 10,000 urine and blood samples per year and has developed sophisticated methodology for screening, detection and confirmation of drugs and their metabolites. The laboratory also conducts illegal drug-use testing for the LSU Department of Athletics and serves as a source of information to the racing industry and the public regarding drug pharmacology, metabolism and clearance. The Analytical Systems Laboratory, established in 1985, houses advanced mass spectrometry equipment that is used to support other laboratories as well as the research of SVM faculty and graduate students. Equipment in these laboratories includes, Fisons Quattro II GC/LC/MS/MS with Apcl and ESP interfaces, one HP 1090 II, low-flow HPLC (1 ul/min), three 1090 HPLCs equipped with UV- diode array, fluorescence, electrochemical and radiomonitor detectors, a tissue oxidizer, one HP 5971 GC/MS system and beta and gamma counters for radiolabel analyses. The laboratory is currently developing full capabilities to conduct low- and high-throughput proteomics analysis and is enhancing their abilities to conduct protein purification via HPLC methodologies

The Louisiana Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory: The Louisiana Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory is a full service AAVLD- accredited veterinary medical diagnostic laboratory that is funded under contract between the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry and the School of Veterinary Medicine. The laboratory is located within the School of Veterinary Medicine. The laboratory has been in existence since 1980 and continues to expand services and contracts. The mission and operating philosophy of the laboratory is to 1) provide animal disease diagnostic services to the agricultural and general communities of the State of Louisiana, primarily through the veterinary medical profession 2) conduct necessary research for the continued enhancement of development and adaptation of diagnostic tests and protocols and investigation of livestock, companion animal and wildlife diseases impacting on the health and well-being of the animals and citizens of Louisiana. The laboratory provides clinical microbiology, immunology, serology, toxicology histopathology, and molecular diagnostics and arbovirus surveillance. Faculty members in the laboratory hold joint positions in academic units within the School of Veterinary Medicine and in the laboratory, and are involved in the veterinary teaching curriculum and in research.

Last Updated Thursday, July 03 2008 @ 03:21 PM CDT|44,661 Hits