The SRI Screening Center (SSC) requests funds to purchase a Compound Management System (ASM- Store/Server System), with high-throughput sample input and output for tubes and vials, from Hamilton Inc, Hopkinton, MA USA. The SSC provides centralized high-throughput storage capabilities and makes SRI's proprietary compounds accessible to SRI investigators involved in research on cancer, neurological conditions, inflammation, and infectious diseases. The long-term objective of purchasing the ASM-Store is to accelerate the translation of NIH-funded basic research into discovery of novel therapeutic compounds. SRI's library includes over 100,000 compounds, and the ASM-Store, which inputs and retrieves samples robotically, will increase research productivity by reducing the effort required to access compounds. Efficient utilization of SRI compounds will immediately benefit the research of 5-10 NIH-funded projects involving discovery of chemical probes and therapeutic molecules;and will ultimately permit all basic and applied researchers at SRI to productively utilize the compound library. Efficient access to medicinal-quality compounds is crucial to promote the translation of concepts and targets from basic research into novel therapeutics. SRI's compound collection is a rich source of biologically active molecules with excellent optimization potential, many of which have yielded clinical candidates. An automated system is needed to fully utilize the library and permit rapid collection of screening sets or cherry picking of compounds from computational searches. All aspects of compound storage and retrieval will be reliable and efficient, benefiting all investigators seeking to identify chemicals with activity against a target of interest. NIH- funded projects in cancer and neurosciences that will immediately use this resource include AMPK modulators, MTF inhibitors, hypocretin agonists, selective nicotinic receptor ligands, mixed NOP/mu receptor ligands and TGF-B activators. Our participation as a """"""""Comprehensive Screening Center"""""""" for NCI's Chemical Biology Consortium, starting June 2009, will also be enhanced by this compound storage system.
Specific aims : 'Achieve reliable and rapid compound storage and retrieval through purchase of a Hamilton ASM-store. 'Organize and store SRI's compound library in a controlled environment and train potential users. 'Facilitate and catalyze the use of SRI's compound library by NIH funded investigators. The purchase of an ASM-Store will support the economy by creating jobs at Hamilton Inc, Hopkinton, MA, and its 75-100 local parts suppliers. Use and training of potential users will require one full-time SRI employee, and additional jobs may be created by the new projects that are created from increased use of the compound library. The ASM-Store keeps compounds at a controlled temperature of -200C, using an efficient mechanical refrigeration method that has a significantly lower carbon footprint than comparable refrigeration systems.
