Òscar Fornas

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Service

Flow Cytometry Unit offers to PRBB researchers technical expertise and training to access the state-of-the-art instrumentation, as well as technical and scientific advice to develop efficient and reliable flow cytometric assays. The facility counts with 6 analysers and 2 cell sorters covering most described flow cytometry applications. Additionally, new technological and methodological solutions are developed under scientific community needs.

Provided services:

  • Unassisted bench-top analysis.

  • Assisted bench-top analysis.

  • Extensive individual training on bench-top analysers.

  • Extensive training on FACSAria sorter for advanced users.

  • Cell sorting: Staff-assisted procedure.

  • Support in project/assay development using Flow Cytometry.

  • Application implementation or development under user demand.

The instrument booking reflects high facility usage with around 6500 hours per year and around 300 active users within 110 research groups.

 

Current Projects 

We are focused to develop and implement advanced and novel flow cytometry applications for the scientific community needs, making them standard and available for the whole community. Most relevant developed ones are:

  • Flow Karyotyping for chromosome sorting and sequencing.

We have established this application in collaboration with Yale University, USA to address some biological questions as an alternative to conventional genomic tools. It has generated national and international collaborations. Currently, the facility is unique providing this application in Europe, consequently, we participate in several national and international collaborations as a referent site.

  • Single virus sorting for single virus genomics.

We have developed this application in collaboration with Universidad de Alicante, Spain as a new tool to study the global virosphere. It has generated national and international collaborations. Currently, the facility is unique, all over the world, providing this application. Consequently, we participate in several collaborations.

 
 

Team during 2017-18

  • Technicians: Eva Julià, Erika Ramírez and Àlex Bote.
     

Selected publications 2017-18