USF Institutional Blurbs:
The University of South Florida (USF) is a high-impact, global research university dedicated to
student success. USF was established in 1956 as a public university and is a comprehensive
research university serving more than 48,000 students. The USF System is an evolving multicampus system of higher education with fiscally autonomous, yet complementary,
independently accredited institutions located in Tampa (including USF Health), St. Petersburg,
and Sarasota-Manatee. USF is home to medical clinics and hospitals, a major mental health
research institute, and two public broadcasting stations. The university employs more than
1,800 full-time instructional faculty and over 7,000 full-time staff. USF is a member of the
American Athletic Conference. It has a $1.5 billion annual budget, and an annual economic
impact of $4.4 billion.
One of 12 universities within the State University System of Florida, USF is one of the nation's
top public research universities and a leading metropolitan research university. USF has 13
colleges: Arts and Sciences, The Arts, Behavioral & Community Sciences, Business, Education,
Engineering, Global Sustainability, Honors, Marine Science, Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, and
Public Health, plus the Offices of Graduate and Undergraduate Studies. The university offers
182 degree programs, including the doctor of medicine: 90 bachelor programs, 48 master
programs, two education specialist degree programs, 38 research doctoral programs, and four
MD programs. The Office of the Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs is the
center for all academic operations and functions at the university. USF ranks as a national
leader in online education, according to the Guide to Online Schools, ranking 24th on its "best
overall" list of top nonprofit and for-profit schools (2013).
The university is dedicated to the discovery of new knowledge, insights, and forms of expression
through significant innovative research and other creative activity, and to the preservation,
organization, analysis, and synthesis of existing knowledge. USF is one of only four Florida
public universities classified by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching in
the top tier of research activities, a distinction attained by only 2.3 percent of all universities. As
a leading publicly supported university, USF accomplishes its research mission by building on
existing program strengths, fostering effective, transdisciplinary approaches, and contributing
to the resolution of social, cultural, economical, medical and technological challenges facing the
metropolitan population of our community, state, nation and the world.
USF faculty, students and staff are proactive in the search for new knowledge and consistently
demonstrate their concern about the world in which we live. With the support of private and
public agencies, they contribute to our knowledge about the world and apply their findings and
skills to solving many of the problems facing contemporary society. Many contributions evolve
from basic research; others, from practical applications of new knowledge. Other projects make
specialized training available to public officials, organizations working for social betterment,
religious and educational institutions, and business and manufacturing organizations. Through
sponsored and non-sponsored activities, USF faculty, students and staff make significant
contributions to instructional programs.
The dedication of USF researchers, students and staff has contributed to the phenomenal
growth in research that USF experienced over the past 30 years. In FY1986, the university
received only $22.3 million in external funding for research projects. By the end of FY1995,
research awards had reached over $100 million. In FY2014, USF generated over $428 million in
sponsored research. The Chronicle of Higher Education's Almanac of Higher
Education ranked USF as the nation's fifth growing research university from 2000-2010.
The University of South Florida is one of only 40 public research universities nationwide with
very high research activity (RU/VH) that is designated as "community engaged" by the Carnegie
Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. According to the National Science Foundation,
USF ranks 43rd in the nation for total research expenditures among all U.S. universities, public
or private, and 27th in total research expenditures for public universities (2013).
USF ranks 12th worldwide among all universities granted U.S. patents (2013), ranking in the top
15 for four years in a row (2010-2013), according to the Intellectual Property Owners
Association. The university supports economic development and the translation of USF research
and technologies to the marketplace, through an active Technology Transfer Office and USF
CONNECT, the economic development arm of USF. The Tampa Bay Technology Incubator, with
nearly 60 resident and affiliate companies, is part of UCF CONNECT, which is located in the
USF Research Park, named Emerging Research Park of the Year in 2008 by the
Association of University Research Parks.
USF has numerous research and health care partnerships through affiliation agreements with
hospitals and not-for-profit organizations in the metropolitan Tampa Bay area. USF affiliates
include the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, James A. Haley Veterans
Hospital, C.W. Bill Young Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center (formerly Bay Pines
VA Hospital), Tampa General Hospital, All Children's Hospital, Bayfront Medical Center,
Shriner's Children's Hospital, Florida Hospital Tampa, and the U.S. Geological Survey.
As a National Cancer Institute Comprehensive Cancer Center, the Moffitt Cancer Center, located
on the USF Tampa campus, is part of an elite group of cancer centers nationwide that focus on
the quick translation of research advances to improvements in patient care and has developed a
strong national reputation for excellence. The James A. Haley Veterans Hospital, located within
walking distance of USF Health's Morsani College of Medicine, provides research and training
experiences for faculty, staff, and students. The USF Health System is also closely affiliated with
Tampa General Hospital and the Lakeland Regional Medical Center, which provide training for
residents and medical students. The Shriner's Children's Hospital (at USF Tampa), Florida
Hospital Tampa (within walking distance), All Children's Hospital, Bayfront Medical Center and
the C.W. Bill Young Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center (in St. Petersburg), as well
as the USF Health Byrd Alzheimer's Institute (at USF Tampa), provide additional research and
training grounds for USF faculty and students.
Affiliate partnerships established with Mote Marine Laboratory and the Charles Stark Draper
Laboratory have expanded the research and development capacities, student educational
opportunities, and economic development impact of USF. Affiliation agreements with
organizations normally provide for collaboration through shared facilities, faculty, and
equipment, as well as support for graduate students and internship programs. These types of
agreements enable the institutions to pool resources, such as laboratory space, and enable
compliance committees to stimulate an exchange of ideas.
Throughout the university's development, the faculty at USF have identified and satisfied needs
on a local, national and global scale. A variety of activities in such areas as health care,
neuroscience, transportation, informatics, cybersecurity, education and engineering are
conducted by specialized research and development centers and institutes. The university
currently has over 100 such centers and institutes, many of which function in an
interdisciplinary fashion, enabling coordination of projects across colleges.
From developing sources of clean energy, to enhancing the quality of life for people with
disabilities and leading the way on veterans' research and reintegration, USF research,
innovation and economic development is focused on creating local, national and global solutions
to society's most difficult problems.
Various Facilities/Other Resources at USF:
CMMB Core Facility:
Resources include Microarray, Flow Cytometry, Tissue Culture, Microscopy, Multiplex
Systems, Cryogenic Repository, etc. Please see website for full details:
http://biology.usf.edu/cmmb/research/facility.aspx
CDDI:
Cell Biology Core:
Cell isolation and analysis (combined College of Medicine/CDDI core).
The cell biology core provides researchers access to cell sorting and analysis for target
characterization and validation. The BD FACS Aria II sorter is BSL2 capable permitting
levels of safety in cell sorting not available in most flow cores. A second BD Canto II flow
cytometer provides automated sampling for analytical flow cytometry. Fully automated
Zeiss Axiovert 100 deconvolution and Lecia DM 6000 (laser microcapture) microscopes
provide tools for protein analysis with particle resolution >0.5mm.
CDDI core laboratories are equipped with the following instrumentation:
Cell isolation and analysis (combined COM/CDDI core).

BD-FACSaria II cell sorter (BSL2 capable) and BD Canto II analytical flow
cytometers.
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Zeiss Axiovert 100 deconvolution and Lecia DM 6000 laser capture fluorescent
microscopes.
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ABI 7900 real time PCR and Agilent model 2100 bioanalyzer.
Chemodiversity Facility:
The Chemodiversity facility offers libraries of natural product-derived crude extracts,
fractions and pure compounds for screening as well as medicinal chemistry and hit-tolead synthetic capabilities. Small molecules high resolution mass measurement,
quantification and metabolomics (GC/MS QToF), mass targeted chromatographic
separation (LC/MS SQ) and screening for anthelmintic, antimicrobial, permeability and
drug solubility evaluation are provided. The services also include general
chromatography (MPLC, HPLC) and spectroscopic characterization (UV, IR) as well as
microbiology workspace (biosafety cabinets), training and synthesis activities.
The CDDI Chemodiversity facility is equipped with the following instrumentation:

Teledyne-Isco MPLC (UV) and Shimadzu HPLC (UV, RID) systems

TECAN Freedom EVO 150 liquid handling automated workstation
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Tecan Infinite/ M-1000 multimode plate reader

Heidolph control valve rotary evaporators, Savant SC210A speedvacuum
concentrators

Labconco 4.5 Liters freeze dryer and SP Scientific general purpose 35 Liters
freeze dryer
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Agilent 7890 GC/ 7200 MS QToF
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Agilent preparative 1200 LC/ 6120B MS SQ
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Anton-Paar monowave reactor 300 for assisted microwave synthesis
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Agilent Cary FTIR 630 spectrometer and Cary 60 UV/Vis spectrophotometer
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Labconco synthetic fume hoods and Thermo scientific biosafety hoods

Innovative Technologies Pure Solv Micro solvent purification system for
anhydrous solvent preparation
High Field NMR Facility
The Center for Drug Discovery and Innovation offers state-of-the-art ultra-high field
NMR instrumentation for the structural studies, especially in metabolomics, and
biomacromolecular structural biology, etc. NMR core laboratory enables researchers to
characterize protein structure at atomic resolution. The facility includes NMR
spectrometers operating at 14 and 18 Tesla with associated HCN triple resonance cold
probes that have carbon-enhanced and salt tolerant capabilities, which supply the
highest possible 1H and 13C sensitivity for all applications. Technical support and
training are available for all aspects of project development including feasibility studies
as well as advanced protein-ligand interaction studies.
The resources of the NMR facility can be accessed either on a fee-for-service basis or on
collaborative projects. The fee-based services include acquisition and analysis of the
required spectra for structure elucidation of small molecules (e.g. synthetic molecules,
natural products, and small peptides etc.). The collaborative projects include NMR
solution structure determinations of biomacromolecules, protein dynamic studies, RDCs
measurements, protein-protein (or with various ligands) interactions (Drug screening).
Please contact us for more detailed information on NMR experiments conducting and
collaborations.
CDDI core laboratories are equipped with the following instrumentation:

Agilent VNMRS 600 and 800 MHz spectrometers with cold probes
Protein Production Core
Protein production is a significant bottleneck in early phase drug discovery. Two
laboratories serve this mission housed in CDDI and COM under the direction of a core
director. The production laboratories are fully equipped and staffed to help the
researcher produce proteins in bacteria, yeast or insect cells. Whether the protein is
hopelessly insoluble or difficult to produce in quantity the core staff is ready to work with
individuals to turn failure into success.
Expression Vector Construction

We have stocks of expression vectors with different combinations of fusion
tags, including polyhistidine-tag (6xHis), Glutathione S-transferase (GST),
Maltose-binding protein (MBP), Nus A, and solubility-enhancement tag
(SET). We can also use customer-supplied vectors.
Protein Expression

Recombinant proteins would be expressed in bacteria (E. coli), yeast and
baculovirus (insect cells) systems. Small-scale trials would be used to find the
best condition and cell line for expression and solubility level. Large-scale
expression can be performed in New Brunswick BioFlo 310 fermentor (1-14
liter) or temperature-controlled shaking incubators.
Solubility Optimization

A solubility screening system has been set up to search the best lysis buffer
combination for difficult projects. Our latest trial showed about 26% increase
in solubility of a target protein.
Protein Purification

The core is equipped with multiple GE AKAT systems and a Bio-Rad Duo
Flow system. We provide protein purification using affinity (6xHis, GST, etc),
ion-exchange, and/or size exclusion chromatography, from a few to several
hundred milligrams protein. The target could be from either natural or
recombinant sources.
Protein Characterization

The core is equipped with a state-of-the-art nano crystallization robot that
can screen thousands of conditions in a matter of hours. It is capable of
dispensing without contact a nanoliter quantity of sample both accurately and
reproducibly. We have regular synchrotron X-ray access and the ability to
perform remote data collection of macromolecule X-ray diffraction.

We provide regular protein characterization services including SDS-PAGE,
western blot and quantitation of purified protein using NanoDrop. The core is
also equipped with a Bio-Rad Plex 200 (Luminex) XMap Technology system
and a Q-Sense E4 Quartz Crystal Microbalance - with dissipation monitoring
(QCM-D).
Major Equipment

GE AKTA Explorer (housed in COM)

GE AKTA Purifier

Pre-packed Ni-affinity, GST-affinity, Ion-exchange and Size Exclusion
Chromatography columns

Bio-Rad BioLogic Duo Flow FPLC system

NBS BioFlow 310 Fermentor with 2.5 and 14 liter capacity

Temperature-controlled Shaking Incubators

ARI Crystal Phoenix Liquid Handling System (housed in COM)

Insect cell culture facilities (housed in COM)
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Sorvall RC6 highspeed centrifuge with 4x1000 capacity

French Press and Misonic 4000 sonicator
Proteomics and Mass Spectrometry Core
The Proteomics and Mass Spectrometry Facility provides expertise in biological mass
spectrometry for large-scale protein identification and characterization as well as
quantitative proteomics-based workflows. The facility is equipped with highperformance mass spectrometers with electrospray ionization sources coupled to nanoflow liquid chromatographs - ideal for proteomics applications. Services include accurate
mass analysis of intact proteins and small molecules, one-dimensional separation (e.g.
ion-exchange chromatography, SDS-PAGE, Gel-FREE), isotope labeling for multiplex
relative and absolute quantitation of proteins from normal, disease, and drug-treated
states, posttranslational modification enrichment and characterization, and label-free
relative quantitation of cell and tissue extracts. We provide on-site training to
undergraduate/graduate students and post-doctoral scholars.
CDDI laboratories are equipped with the following instrumentation:
Hybrid linear ion trap-Orbitrap (LTQ Orbitrap XL, Thermo) nLC/MS

High-throughput Proteomics Platform
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Accurate Mass Measurement (< 5 ppm)
Relative Quantitation (SILAC)
Posttranslational Modifications

Recombinant Protein Molecular Weight

Large Scale Proteomic Experiments
Linear ion trap (LTQ XL, Thermo) nLC/MS

High-throughput Proteomics Platform

Gel-Band Protein Identification

Spectral Counting Relative Quantitation

Project Development Samples

MSn Analysis of Small Molecules
Triple quadrupole (TSQ Quantum Ultra, Thermo) nLC or LC/MS

High-throughput Targeted MS Experiments

Targeted nLC Quantitation of Diagnostic Proteins/Peptides

High-Throughput Targeted MS Experiments

Targeted quantitation of small molecules

Project Development Samples
New in 2014
Hybrid Quadrupole-Orbitrap (Q Exactive Plus, Thermo) nUPLC/MS

High-throughput Proteomics/Metabolomics Platform

Extended Mass Range (m/z 50-600)

Improved resolving power to 140,000 at m/z 200

Improved Sensitivity and Scan Rate up to 12 Hz

Multiplexing up to 10 precursors per scan (iTRAQ)

Mass Accuracy to < 3 ppm

Polarity Switching for Single Acquisition Metabolomics Profiling

UPLC for improved peak resolution and higher throughput
Protein Informatics Software

MASCOT - Bioworks - MaxQuant - Scaffold 4.3.4 - Ingenuity Pathway
Analysis
Moffitt:
Resources include Analytic Microscopy, Biostatistics, Cancer Informatics, Cell Therapies,
Chemical Biology, Flow Cytometry, Image Response Assessment Team, Molecular
Genomics, Proteomics, Small Animal Imaging Lab, Survey Methods, Tissue Culture, and
Translational Research. Please see website for full details:
http://moffitt.org/careers/research-careers/cores