Facilities and Equipment

The lab is located at Biocant, nearby Coimbra (Center of Portugal), in a new state-of-the-art research facility (see http://www.biocant.pt)

The lab is equipped with general chemical synthesis and characterization equipment, laminar flow hoods, CO2 incubators, phase inverted microscopes, spin coater, rotovap, and other chemistry and cell biology equipment.

Researchers have access to flow cytometry, fluorescence microscopy, scanning confocal microscopy, quantitative RT-PCR, electrophoresis apparatus, HPLC, freeze-dryer, NMR, and microbiology facilities.

High-throughput screening facility

Our group is responsible for the management of the HTSF.

HTSF will offer high-content and high-troughput screening services both at cellular level (based in microscopy) and gene level (based in PCR). Laser microdissection technique allows the isolation of uncontaminated samples (sample purification) and single cells for downstream applications. Furthermore, HTSF offers confocal microscopy services for target validation. Both the high-content imaging microscope and the confocal microscope have environmental control and allow the performance of long-term live cell experiments. HTSF will also offer training and technological innovation to the academic and industrial communities.

Resources
→ Laser scanning confocal microscope (LSM 710, Zeiss)
→ P.A.L.M. laser microdissection microscope (Zeiss)
→ Automated widefield high-content imaging microscope (In Cell Analyzer 2200, GE Healthcare)
→ High-throughput PCR for real-time PCR, end-point PCR and digital PCR, based in Integrated fluidic circuit technology(BioMark HD System, Fluidigm)
→ Imaging analysis: In Cell Investigator (GE Healthcare), FIJI/ImageJ

Booking and Fees
(Rules to access HTSF resources and Fees)
→ All users will have to book their session in an on-line calendar (Agendo) or with the technician, and they cannot exceed the booked time.
→ Reservations can be cancelled until 24h before the booked time. → Unused reservations will be fully charged.
→ The sessions in the laser microdissection, In Cell Analyzer 2200 and Biomark HD will always be carried out by a HTSF technician.
→ A HTSF technician will always monitor the first session of a new user in the confocal microscope LSM 710.
→ Users data will be erased from the PCs every 2 weeks.
→ Biomark HD equipment and InCell analyser can be utilized based upon a collaboration, for more information please contact the technician.