Current RG Studies
Genome Editing (GERG)
Mission
The mission of the Genome Editing Research Group is to collect and disseminate the fast-evolving knowledge in designer nuclease technologies, to undertake pilot research projects and to provide/publish the streamlined processes that could be used as guidelines by the interested Core Facilities to initiate Genome Editing technologies as services in their labs.
Light Microscopy (LMRG)
Mission
Our goal is to promote scientific exchange between researchers, specifically those in core facilities in order to increase our general knowledge and experience. We seek to provide a forum for multi-site experiments exploring “standards” for the field of light microscopy.
Metabolomics (MRG)
Metabolomics Research Group 2022 Study
- Compound Identification –
Consistent and accurate compound identification is a major challenge for LC/MS based metabolomics. The presence of multiple isomeric compounds, matrix effects, low and varying analyte concentration, and in source fragmentation and adduct formation are major contributing factors to this challenge. A combination of accurate mass MS1, MS2 fragmentation, and retention time (RT) of external standards is frequently used to provide a high confidence, though unconfirmed, compound identification. However, given this information (MS1, MS2, RT) it is unclear how much compound identification success will vary from lab to lab. The aim of this study is to quantify inter-personal and inter-lab variability of compound identification.
The target population of this study are PIs, trainees, and professional staff of metabolomics laboratories. More than one participant from each lab can participate so we can assess not only inter- but also intra-lab variability of compound identification accuracy.
The study participants are provided with two datasets. They have the option to return results for only one dataset or both datasets.
he study material can be downloaded as a single Zip file: https://osf.io/xbgc5/download. It consists of an Excel spreadsheet including instructions and a survey (MRG_CompoundID study.xlsx) and two mzML data files (MS1.mzML and ddMS2.mzML). The Excel file is used for returning results by email.
IMPORTANT: All results are submitted anonymously, identified only by an 8-digit identification number that you select.
Please return your results to mrgabrf2022@gmail.com no later than December 31, 2022.
If you have any questions please contact Ryan Sheldon or Chris Turck.
Mission
The aims of the Metabolomics Research Group are a) to educate research scientists and resource facilities in the analytical approaches and management of data resulting from comprehensive metabolite studies and b) to promote the science and standardization of metabolomic analyses for a variety of applications. Group efforts will also include conducting surveys and organizing sessions at the annual ABRF meeting to explore the current state of the art in the field and the organization of research studies.
Questions or interest in joining an ABRF research group? Contact us!
Metabolomics is the comprehensive profiling of metabolites and other small molecules. The large structural diversity of these compounds makes both comprehensive profiling and identification challenging. The major platforms are NMR and mass spectrometry, particularly LC/MS and GC/MS. There is currently a great variety of approaches, including untargeted profiling, targeted approaches, and fluxomics. Both semi-quantitative and quantitative approaches can be used. Challenges include identification of metabolites and how they change in relation to a biological perturbation (e.g. drug, diet, disease) and determining the biological significance of these changes. The Metabolomics Research Group consists of members from academic core and research laboratories, industrial analytical laboratories and providers of metabolomic services, analytical standards and instrumentation.
Metagenomics and Microbiome (MMRG)
Mission
Many of the Members on the MMRG have been involved in microbiome analysis for over 20 years and have a strong appreciation for the field. They are dedicated and understand the needs of this new and exciting field that continues to grow at an exponential rate.
Call for Members:
The ABRF Microbiome and Metagenomics Research Group (MMRG) is seeking to expand its membership. The research group focuses on both general and special topics in all aspects of microbiome sciences including study design, surveys, lab methods and results, disruptive technologies, and commercial product characterization. We are seeking new members who have bandwidth to contribute to our study topic.
Please join our exciting and rewarding research team. Contact us to learn how you can join the MMRG ....
The ABRF Metagenomics and Microbiome Research Group is composed of Core lab managers, bench scientists, and bioinformaticists. The goals of the MMRG will be to establish and evaluate techniques that core laboratory operators, directors, managers, and users commonly ask. Initial studies include assembling microbial standards and to characterize shortcomings of current metagenomic techniques. this includes optimizing DNA extraction protocols, library synthesis methods for different NGS platforms and developing best approaches for bioinformatics. The development of bacterial cocktails includes working with specific vendors in the field to establish a bacterial counting platform (similar to simple low cost mammalian cell counters) that can be used for low cost, high speed bacterial cell counting as needed for both research and clinical metagenomic quality control requirements. This enumeration device will be validated against standard techniques such as flow cytometry, Microscopic, and LSC techniques. Development of a fixation technique that preserves DNA and RNA without cell leakage is also required. We intend to work very closely with the appropriate vendor of the field to help advance this technology.