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ICE Integrated Microgenomics platform
ICE (Iso Cell Express): an integrated solution for microgenomics
© INRA ICE One of today's challenges for biologists is the ability to understand and analyse the genome expressed by a particular cell type. This means working on very small or even tiny quantities of biological material.
ICE is an open structure working mainly at a local and regional level, supported by the research team "Milk, Genome and Health" or LGS of the joint research unit GABI (Animal Genetics and Integrative Biology) involved in programs for the analysis of gene expression.
The originality of the ICE platform relies on its capacity to produce and analyse microquantities of material extracted from cells isolated from their tissular environment, under morphological control, using laser microdissection.
Microgenomics requires highly specialised equipment and an expertise for handling very small amounts of biological material.
Our staff with expertise in transcriptomics and proteomics makes it possible to offer access to high level support, a customized offer to match your specific needs in integrated solutions in microgenomics and individual services for the differential analysis of biomolecules, in close interaction with the other platforms at Jouy-en-Josas (PAPSSO i.e. platform for proteomic analyses, CRB-GADIE and MIMA2 i.e. platform for microscopy and imaging analyses of micro-organisms, animals and foods). This localization provides a specific environment, enabling the platform to work on improving necessary technology that is then made available to its users. The objectives of the platform are:
Our specificities:
1 - Laser microdissection: capturing and/or cutting (LCM)« Laser capture microdissection » is based on the use of an IR laser (low energy) that permits cell capture by adhering the cells to a film. This technology is particularly adapted to the isolation of single cells (or epithelia), therefore preserving the integrity of the extracted biomolecules, in particular RNA.
« Laser cutting microdissection » is based on the use of a UV laser that ablates the tissue surrounding the targeted region, which is then retrieved for further analysis. This technique is particularly well adapted to the isolation of large pieces of tissue, resistant tissues or chromosomes.
The ICE platform is equipped with the VERITAS microdissector (Arcturus, Molecular Device), which permits both capture and cutting of samples. This unique combination is therefore adapted to a larger number of applications.
Before beginning a project, a "feasibility test" is performed in order to check that the tissue sample is compatible with laser microdissection, to decide on which technology should be used (capture and/or cutting) and to define which procedures will be performed for the analysis of the biomolecules. The sample's quantity and quality are also verified. Then users are quickly informed on their demand is feasible or not. 2 - Real Time Quantitative PCR and TLDAThe ICE platform has an ABI Prism 7900 HT (Applied Biosystems) equipped with a standard 96-well block and a block adapted to TLDA (TaqMan Low Density Array) microfluidic chips, precharged (TaqMan primers and probes specific for important genes). These microarrays permit simultaneous analysis of the expression of 16 to 384 genes. (For more information, please consult the Applied Biosystems website). 3 - Expressionnal Microgenomics
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