SJSU First CS
Campus to Acquire Flow Cytometer
"The Scientist", Spring 2001
The College of Science recently achieved unprecedented distinction through a National
Science Foundation (NSF) grant to use advanced technology as an undergraduate teaching
tool.
forging an entrepreneurial joint venture with the California State University Program
in Education and Research in Biotechnology (CSUPERB) and BD Biosciences (the premier
developer of flow cytometry instrumentation in the US), the College of Science has
become the first CSU campus to acquire a flow cytometer.
CSUPERB is the biotechnology education and research program of the CSU system whose
mission is to facilitate the establishment and operations of multi-user instrumentation
facilities, all of which have educational, research and teaching capabilities.
CSUPERB Executive Director Steve Dahms says the SJSU facility will enrich the training
environment in flow cytometry, which CSUPERB has been trying to get into the CSU
system for several years. "SJSU will facilitate knowledge of the flow cytometer
throughout the CSU system," he said.
The sophisticated analysis tool has not been used extensively in an undergraduate
educational setting, although it has been used in research and clinical settings
for more than 10 years. "Our primary goal is to develop it for teaching," says Biological Sciences Professor John Boothby. He and Associate Professor of Biology Ruthann Kibler,
co-authors of the NSF grant and the program Principal Investigators, are developing
protocols for classroom applications and plan to integrate them into undergraduate
laboratory courses. "It's an exciting technique with untapped potential to teach
students about cells," Boothby says. The flow cytometer, which enables scientists
to obtain information about thousands of individual cells within seconds, uses a
laser beam and fluorescent dyes to detect cellular properties such as size, molecular
complexity and the presence of membrane and cytoplasmic molecules, explains Kibler.
The grant proposal was so well written that it was promoted as a model for other
educational institutions by an NSF official at a recent statewide CSUPERB meeting
in Pomona. Using advanced technology and partnering with industry were among its
distinguishing points.
"This is a perfect example of a joint venture between a university and a corporation,
and the types of collaborations we want to foster," says Dahms.
Article originally published in the College of Science "The Scientist", Spring 2001.