Mass Spectrometry and Proteomics Core Facility- Rates

Beginning July 1, 2005 users will be charged an access fee to help defray the cost of service contracts on these instruments. Details are provided below.

TofSpec-2E (MALDI-TOF)

Approved users may run their own samples at a rate of $15/hour for a minimum of one hour (also see Data Analysis below). Facility staff can run samples for $30/hour. The facility will provide matrix solutions and protein and peptide standards for calibration; users must purchase all other consumables (primarily target plates). Users can be certified to use the TofSpec-2E by taking a training course run by facility personnel, which will be offered approximately every 3-4 months (see "Training" menu).

Q-TOF (quadrupole time of flight- MS/MS)

The QTOF will be primarily operated by facility staff at a rate of $100/hour. A standard run uses the standard C18 column and water/acetonitrile solvents. Users who take the $5,000 Micromass QTOF training course (or else an equivalent amount of hands-on experience) will be considered first tier QTOF users and can operate the QTOF without assistance and at a cost of $25 per hour.

QTOF users should meet with facility staff several weeks prior to launching a new project in order to convey individual requirements and methods. Users must purchase their own HPLC columns, for example Waters Atlantis or Xterra C18 columns (column I.D. between 0.32 and 1.0 mm and 10 cm maximum length), which are good for about 100 runs depending on sample. LC-MS solvents are provided by the facility; HPLC solvents not commonly used for MS should be provided by the users and should be MS-compatible (e.g. avoid phosphate buffers and > 1 mM salt concentrations). LC-MS compatible separation protocols will also be required and must be supplied by the user.

Data Analysis

For data analysis, users can process their data and perform database searches off-line, free of charge, using the IBM workstation in the Proteomics lab. Extensive data analysis (more than one hour) should be performed during the evening or weekends.