The inflammatory Mediator Core serves a central role in the Cystic Fibrosis Research Core Center by providing quick, accurate, and accessible assays of markers and regulators of inflammation necessary for discerning mechanism responsible for CF inflammatory responses and for assessing the efficacy of novel CF therapeutics. The objectives of the Inflammatory Mediator Core are: 1) To perform routine assays of cytokines and other inflammatory mediators on human, mouse, and cultured cell samples provided by Center investigators. The Core will provide prompt, sensitive, reliable, cost effective assays, maintaining high quality control and standardization; 2) To assist investigators in standardizing new assays and to assist laboratory personnel in interpreting results and designing experiments. The Core has experienced remarkable growth in recent years. During the 1996-2000 grant period, the inflammatory mediator core performed 21,818 cytokine assays, while hat number has increased to 48,143 cytokine assays during the current grant period. The Core performs assays of cytokines, eicosanoids, cyclic nucleotides, proteases and protease inhibitors, and metabolic hormones such as leptin on samples from animal models and cultured cells, as well as human samples including BAL, serum, and sputum samples. Currently, the quantitation of the """"""""mediators' is accomplished by primarily by Luminex technology and by ELISA determination of mediator content. Moving forward, the Inflammatory Mediator Core will become a multifaceted facility providing not only the fundamental quantitation of cytokines, chemokines and eicosanoids, but also will incorporate services directed toward understanding gene expression, cell phenotype and cell-cell communication to accommodate more mechanistic-driven research within the Center. These new directions will provide investigators with not only a phenomenological quantification of static mediator content, but will also provide information regarding regulation and functional interactions. These new services will compliment exisiting Core assays and are projected to contribute to further expansion and utilization of the Core in the next grant period.
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