The GCE4All Center: Unleashing the Potential of Genetic Code Expansion for Biomedical Research

EQUIPMENT SUPPLEMENT ABSTRACT The GCE4All Biomedical Technology Optimization and Dissemination Center at Oregon State University (OSU) serves to optimize, develop, and broadly disseminate Genetic Code Expansion (GCE) technology – the engineering of cellular translation to express proteins containing non-canonical amino acids (ncAAs). During its envisioned lifespan of ≤15 years, the Center's mission is to effectively extend existing GCE technologies for facile use by non-specialists, and to broadly disseminate them via widespread education, effective training, and by providing sustainable access to optimized technologies via established repositories – enabling powerful GCE approaches to become standard, widely-used tools of biomedical researchers. As we optimize our GCE technology, we require frequent and dependable access to a cell sorter for separating cells containing a range of functionally evolved or genome encoded translational components. However, the only cell sorter currently at OSU is across campus from our building, owned by a different College, and is over 8 years old with no service contract in place or staff in charge of routine upkeep. These challenges lead to limitations in access and functionality that often disrupt our workflows. Here, we request funds to acquire a Sony MA900, a multi- application benchtop cell sorter. This would allow us a center housed system that is walk-up capable for use on our samples, samples from our DBP collaborations, and samples from our yearly workshop attendees. A permanent center staff member will be assigned to equipment maintenance and user training. The in-house ability to run and process our own samples on a daily basis will greatly accelerate the center mission regarding GCE technology development, optimization and dissemination for DBPs and GCE trainees. The summary of our original grant is included in our research strategy document.