UM, IBBR and CBT Research Awarded DOD Funding Small Animal Imaging System
A multidisciplinary group of University of Maryland researchers, led by Dr. Daniel Nelson of the Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research (IBBR) and Department of Veterinary Medicine, recently received a grant from the Department of Defense to purchase a Caliper Lumina XR in vivo imaging system (IVIS). Fourteen investigators from the University of Maryland College Park and University of Maryland Baltimore (UMB) participated on the proposal. The award was made under the Defense University Research Instrumentation Program (DURIP), a Department of Defense initiative that enhances university capabilities to perform cutting-edge defense research. “The Lumina IVIS fills a much needed gap as many UM and UMB investigators work with small animals and the molecular tools for live animal imaging are rapidly advancing”, says Dr. Nelson.
This state-of-the-art Lumina IVIS XR was selected for its flexibility, range of use and throughput. It is capable of imaging both fluorescent and bioluminescent reporters or dyes. In addition, the selected XR system has an x-ray overlay capability that brings the optical signal into anatomical context. The system incorporates premium animal handling features such as a heated stage, gas anesthesia connections, and a syringe injection system for simultaneous compound administration.
This instrument will be supported by committed funds from IBBR and from the UMB Center for Biomolecular Therapeutics (CBT). The IVIS will be located at IBBR in Shady Grove, which is also the site of the CBT and it will be available to University of Maryland researchers on a fee-for-service basis.
“We are confident that the continued enhancement of shared resources, like the Caliper Lumina IVIS XR, at IBBR will play a significant role in developing integrated, cross-disciplinary team approaches to scientific challenges, technology development and education”, commented Dr. Donald Nuss, Director of IBBR. Dr. David Weber, Director of CBT, Associate Director of IBBR, and UMB Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry indicates that “the acquisition of this instrument will generate those data that are key for advancing important research questions”. Weber is also enthusiastic that locating the imager at IBBR will continue to position IBBR as the “Inter-county connector” of the University of Maryland at College Park and the University of Maryland-Baltimore.
About the Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research (IBBR)
The Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research (IBBR) is a University System of Maryland joint research enterprise created to enhance collaboration among the University of Maryland College Park, The University of Maryland Baltimore and the National Institute of Standards and Technology. The mission of IBBR is to leverage collective research strengths of the partnering institutions in medicine, biosciences, technology, quantitative sciences and engineering, to foster integrated, cross-disciplinary team approaches to scientific discovery and education, and to serve the expanding economic base of biosciences and technology in the state of Maryland and the Nation.