Supporting excellence in basic and clinical research: A flow cytometry/sorting and cell imaging platform for the genotypic and phenotypic analysis of Hazard Group 3 pathogens. (360G-Wellcome-104936_Z_14_Z)

Funding is requested for a BD-FACS-Aria-Fusion cell-sorter and a Zeiss-LSM-710-confocal microscope to be housed in LSTM's Hazard-Group-3 (HG3)-containment laboratories. This equipment is principally to support Trust-funded investigators/fellows requiring HG3-biosafety to comply with HSE requirements. The Schools focus on pathogens (many HG3) that cause disease rather than non-pathogenic surrogates has imposed stringent biological safety requirements. The ability to carry out technically ch allenging image-based science for our internal programmes and clinical samples derived from Wellcome Trust Overseas Programmes (e.g.Malawi/Kenya/Vietnam) while ensuring the highest levels of operator safety requires investment. The complementary imaging platform of flow-cytomety (with sorting) and confocal microscopy (real-time live imaging of cells/tissues) will allow PIs the ability of genotyping and phenotyping live HG3-pathogens. This is an essential requirement in order to facilitate s tudies into the temporal responses of important pathogens to experimental perturbations and the isolation of organisms/cells with specific genotypic/phenotypic traits for further investigation. The described HG3-imaging facility, set in one of CTIDs 22 HG3-containment laboratories, will be the first dedicated facility in the North West and possibly the UK, supporting LSTM's and UK's position as an international leader in tropical disease research.