Southern Research Molecular Libraries Screening Center
Southern Research Molecular Libraries Screening Center
Principal Investigator: Gary Piazza
The Southern Research Molecular Libraries Screening Center (SRMLSC) is based at Southern Research Institute, where more than 20 anti-cancer drugs have been discovered and entered into clinical trials, six of which received FDA approval and went to market. The SRMLSC brings extensive drug discovery and development expertise to the network, especially in the areas of cancer, neurological diseases/CNS disorders, and infectious disease (HIV, hepatitis, TB, and emerging pathogens including influenza, H5N1 Avian flu, West Nile virus and SARS coronavirus). Overall, the SRMLSC provides an integrated team of scientists with drug discovery and development expertise for molecular probe development. Southern Research is staffed by more than 40 chemists with extensive synthetic chemistry capabilities. The screening center has broad capabilities to implement any cell-, molecular, or target-based assay including those which require BSL-3 containment. The center will adapt a diverse range of HTS-compatible assays from academic investigators and optimize or miniaturize the assay as necessary. The HTS facility is equipped with state-of-art instrumentation to screen in up to 1536-well plate format, including two ORCA robotic rails, multiple plate readers, two Biomek FX liquid handlers, and a BioRaptr, and Echo 550 for nanoliter volume dispensing. In addition, we use a high-speed automated Evotec Opera confocal microscope for high-throughput imaging assays. Data analysis is performed by scientists with expertise in molecular modeling, predictive algorithms, and QSAR analysis, using a robust assortment of cheminformatics software packages.
SRI Capabilities and Technologies
| Assay Formats | Screening Capabilities | Biologicial Expertise |
|---|---|---|
| Fluorescence Intensity | Cell based Assays | Cancer |
| Fluorescence Polarization | Enzyme Assays | Infectious diseases - both viral and bacterial |
| Time-resolved Fluorescence (TR-FRET) | Yeast-based Assays | Neurodegenerative diseases |
| FRET | Assays involving pathogens and requiring either BSL-2 or BSL-3 containment | Cystic Fibrosis |
| Confocal Fluorescense Microscopy (UV-VIS) | Protein expression and Reporter-based Assays | Bacterial, viral, mammalian cell and yeast protein expression, purification, and characterization |
| Absorbance | Cell viability, cytotoxicity, and apoptosis Assays | Signal transduction |
| Luminescence | High-throughput/content cell imaging Assays | Apoptosis |
| Enhanced Luminescence | Protein-protein interaction Assays | Angiogenesis |
| AlphaScreen | Most assays up to 1536 well format | Cancer chemotherapy and chemoprevention |
| Drug resistance |
For inquiries about assay development at The Southern Research Molecular Libraries Screening Center, please contact the center representative listed in conjunction with visiting the Center’s Web site.
See also: Enabling PI-Center Collaboration Document
For further information about Southern Research Molecular Libraries Screening Center, see below:
