A shared Agilent 6546 LC-QTOF for biomedical research - PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT Because of significant advancements in the capabilities of high-resolution mass spectrometers which has led to revolutionizing many aspects of biomedical research, the absence of such state-of-the-art mass spectrometry (MS) instrumentation can have profound effects on research progress and innovation. Therefore, both the recognition of existing instrumentation challenges, in parallel with strategic institutional priorities at Auburn University, has resulted in identification of the need for a Liquid Chromatography (LC) Quadrupole Time-of-Flight (QTOF) instrument. An obsolete 15-year-old LC-TOF instrument has prevented vital high-resolution mass analysis, thereby dramatically reducing researcher productivity across a variety of project types and opportunities to compete for NIH funding. Developing new methods to address unique individual user needs has grown increasingly limited while additionally identified challenges faced by Auburn biomedical researchers have further bolstered the need for new instrumentation to enhance research accomplishments in MS. Auburn’s Specialized Pharmaceutical Experimental Center for Therapeutics Research and Analysis (SPECTRA) Bioanalytical Core in the Harrison College of Pharmacy is committed to providing study design, sample preparation and method development, bioanalysis, and pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic analysis but needs the appropriate instrumentation to do so. Acquisition of a new QTOF will replace a currently yet outdated MS instrument for routine high-resolution analysis of small molecules and biomolecules that, without it, cannot proceed. The QTOF’s extensive capabilities include both the qualitative analysis of small molecules (e.g., natural products, metabolites, lipids, synthetic compounds) and peptides, and quantitative analysis of small molecules in complex mixtures and synthetic peptides. With this expanded scope of capabilities, this new instrument will support research programs of at least 11 users (of whom, nine who are NIH-funded) at Auburn and regionally who include chemists, biologists, pharmaceutical scientists, and agricultural and veterinary medicine researchers. The QTOF will be housed and maintained in the SPECTRA Core, which has strong institutional support from Auburn, the Office of Vice President of Research, and the Harrison College of Pharmacy. The Core has dedicated staff, facilities, and management to support long-term use of this new instrument. The strong operator-focused structure of the SPECTRA Core will enable the development of new methods tailored to individual research projects. Seamlessly alignment with the SPECTRA’s Core long-term strategic plan, the QTOF will represent the only mass spectrometer of its type in a shared core facility on-campus at Auburn and in the state of Alabama, dramatically improving innovative, user-initiated projects that are potentially more competitive to attract NIH support. By acquiring support for a QTOF, representing the most optimal, reliable MS instrument, profound impact on research opportunities at Auburn University, in South Alabama and beyond can be realized.
