The Media Preparation Shared Facility (MPSF) of the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center (UAB-CCC) serves as a centralized resource for (a) eukaryotic and bacterial cell culture media and supplements, (b) buffers and other high-volume reagents used in routine cell culture and molecular biology applications, (c) quality control assurance and testing, and (d) general consultation and education with regard to cell culture and molecular biology reagents. The overall goals are to improve economy, efficiency and quality of UAB-CCC research activities. MPSF provides economy by supplying common culture media, supplements and buffers to UAB-CCC faculty at charge-back prices lower than available commercial prices. This is accomplished via (1) on-site production with charge-back rates that fail to generate excess MPSF income, and (2) volume purchase negotiations with commercial suppliers, yielding price and shipping charge reductions not available to the average research laboratory. MPSF offers efficiency by convenient on-site product/service availability, with less paperwork and faster delivery as compared to commercial suppliers. Many users take possession of MPSF products in less than 2 hours after initial request. MPSF promotes quality by (a) performing assays for endotoxin and sterility in on-site products, as well as for endotoxin in investigator-submitted samples, and on-site autoclave performance, and (b) offering personalized services including professional consultation for specific experimental problems at no cost, plus design and preparation of custom reagents at low cost.
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