Resources

Laboratory

The EILMC is located in the Health Sciences Research Building II on the Emory University campus. We have dedicated lab space in S205-S210. The EILMC is equipped to perform quantitative lipidomics and metabolomics analyses on samples from a wide variety of biological matrices (e.g. blood, serum, plasma, solid tissues, cell extracts, etc.) to support both clinical and basic research efforts on campus and in the broader research community. These analyses provide insights into lipids and small soluble metabolites whose abundance can be monitored as biomarkers to predict and follow progression of a wide range of diseases, such as metabolic disorders (e.g. obesity, type II diabetes, and NAFLD), neurodegenerative diseases (e.g. Alzheimer’s Disease and Parkinson’s Disease), and cancer (e.g. prostate and breast cancer). In addition to lipidomics and metabolomics, EILMC capabilities also include customized method development and validation for user specified molecules or drug products. The EIMLC is trained to perform Biocrates plate-based p180 and Quant500 assays.

Mass Spectrometers

Sciex QTrap 5500

Hybrid mass spectrometer with triple quadrupole and linear ion trap, capable of MSn experiments. Instrument has a mass range of m/z 5-1250 and a dynamic range of up to 6 orders of magnitude. Used for targeted lipidomics experiments.

Agilent 6495C

Advanced, high sensitivity triple quadrupole mass spectrometer with jet ion source permitting 5x more ionization than traditional sources, increasing analytical sensitivity. Mass range of m/z 5-3000 and wide dynamic range. Used for MRM based targeted lipidomics experiments.

Agilent 6546 QToF

A high resolution mass spectrometer with acquisition rates of 50 spectra/second within a m/z 20-4000 mass range. Dynamic mass resolution over 60K for high mass and 30K for low masses. Used for untargeted and targeted metabolomics workflows.

Shimadzu GC-MS TQ8040 NX

Triple quadrupole GC/MS instrument that is used for the quantification of nonpolar, non-volatile molecules. This highly sensitivity instrument is capable of high speed MRM analysis of up to 800 transitions per second.

Bruker TIMS ToF Pro

Trapped ion mobility (TIMS) LC/MS mass spectrometer that uses serial fragmentation and collisional cross section for identification of species. High resolution mass spectrometer achieves greater than 120Hz scan speeds without affecting resolution.

Thermo ID-X Tribrid

Hybrid Orbitrap mass spectrometer offering resolution up to 500,000 FWHM in mass range of m/z 50-2000. Contains a linear ion trap capable of MSn scans at 40Hz. Used for ultra high resolution untargeted, global lipidomics as well as metabolomics. This instrument is used for 4D untargeted lipidomics.

Chromatography

Sciex Exion LC U/HPLC

Front end liquid chromatography instrument with dual pumping system capable of gradients up to 3ml/min at 6600 bar (9500 PSI). Instrument contains a cooled autosampler that accommodates two 96 well plates or 105 vials. Used in combination with Sciex Qtrap5500.

1290 Infinity II HPLC

Powerful front end liquid chromatography system capable of 1300bar pressures at 5ml/min. Contains a binary pumping system and chilled autosampler. Used in tandem with Agilent 6495c.

Thermo Vanquish UPLC

High end UHPLC instrument capable of pressures up to 1500 bar at flow rates of 5ml/min. System contains a binary pump and refrigerated autosampler with excellent precision, accuracy, and short cycle times. For use with Thermo IDX hybrid mass spectrometer.

Sample Preparation

Omni BeadRuptor: Sample preparation instrument used to grind, lyse, and homogenize samples. This automated, bead mill homogenizer is able to prepare biological samples, including brain, liver, heart, skeletal muscle, adipose, as well as cell culture for lipid or metabolite extraction.

Biotage Extrahera Solid Phase Extraction Robot: This instrument is a robust and automated liquid handling instrument that performs solid phase liquid extractions in both single cassette and 96-well plate formats.

Biotage Extrahera LV-200 Solid Phase Extraction Robot:  An automated sample preparation and liquid handling instrument that performs solid phase liquid extractions at low sample volumes (>5mL) in both single cassette and 96-well plate formats.

Software

Sciex OS: Used for the operation of QTrap5500 mass spectrometer and collection and processing of targeted lipidomics data.

LipidView: Software used for the identification of lipids in biological samples by searching parent and fragment ion masses to a proprietary database containing over 25,000 lipids in a wide variety of lipid classes.

MassHunter: Software used for the operation and analysis of mass spectrometry data collected on the Agilent 6495c and 6546 instruments.

GCMSsolution: Used for the operation of Shimadzu TQ8040 GC/MS. Contains modules for the processing and analysis of mass spectrometry data.

LipidSearch: Lipid identification software that searches fragment ion data against a proprietary database to streamline identification of lipid species and visualization of data.

Compound Discoverer: Software that streamlines identification of small molecules by searching full scan and MSn data with known compounds and molecular pathways.

MetaboScape:  Lipid and metabolite identification and processing software that searches raw data against several databases, including Metlin and HMDB.

Excalibur: Used for the operation of Thermo IDX mass spectrometer. Contains modules for the processing and analysis of mass spectrometry data.