ICMAN - Tissue/Cell Culture Core
Directors
- Steven Green
- Department of Biology and Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery - Marlan Hansen
- Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery
The Tissue/Cell Culture Core (TC core) provides facilities and expertise for the development and
preparation of in vitro models for study of cochlear development, function, and consequences of deafening or trauma.
- Assists investigators in producing cultures for use in their research on the cochlea.
- Assists investigators in genetic manipulation of cultured cochlear cells and tissues using transfection, virus-mediated gene transfer, and the use of genetically modified animals.
- Assists investigators in developing and optimizing new in vitro model systems.
- Trains investigators, students, postdocs, residents, and staff in culture techniques and assists in troubleshooting problems.
- Coordinates multidisciplinary experiments among investigators and the Genomics and Histology & Imaging cores that use live cultures prepared in the TC core.
- Promotes and supports collaborations among investigators to use multidisciplinary approaches with in vitro models or parallel in vivo and in vitro models.
Services Provided
There are two comparably-equipped facilities, one in 5256D CBRB managed by Jason Clark, the other in
232 BB managed by Cathy Kane. Both are fully equipped for most culture techniques, with biosafety cabinets (sterile hoods), CO2
incubators, dissection stations, centrifuges, and inverted microscopes. Investigators can use the facilities to dissect rodent
tissues and prepare and maintain primary cultures or maintain cell lines.
For the most experienced users who may not have fully-equipped tissue culture facilities, the core will provide just that: a facility in which they can schedule time to do dissections, prepare and maintain cultures, including routine observation of the health of the culture using phase contrast microscopy.
Less experienced users will be able to obtain advice and assistance in preparing and maintaining cultures. This includes teaching and observation of culture technique to improve performance and troubleshoot problems. To facilitate training, the core has available video-equipped dissecting microscopes and a video library of demonstrations of dissection and culture techniques.
Least experienced users will be served by having the TC core RA prepare and maintain cultures for their experiments while being trained in culture techniques.
The core directors and RAs will also work with investigators to develop or modify culture preparations to optimize them for particular experiments.
For the most experienced users who may not have fully-equipped tissue culture facilities, the core will provide just that: a facility in which they can schedule time to do dissections, prepare and maintain cultures, including routine observation of the health of the culture using phase contrast microscopy.
Less experienced users will be able to obtain advice and assistance in preparing and maintaining cultures. This includes teaching and observation of culture technique to improve performance and troubleshoot problems. To facilitate training, the core has available video-equipped dissecting microscopes and a video library of demonstrations of dissection and culture techniques.
Least experienced users will be served by having the TC core RA prepare and maintain cultures for their experiments while being trained in culture techniques.
The core directors and RAs will also work with investigators to develop or modify culture preparations to optimize them for particular experiments.
Research Supplies
The Tissue/Cell Culture Core can provide limited supplies for use by investigators. Please check the Supplies List for more information.
Schedule a Consultation
If you require consultation or training on a project for the Tissue/Cell Culture Core, please contact
the following to schedule an appointment:
Cathy Kane
Research Assistant II
Phone: (319) 335-1910
Email: catherine-kane@uiowa.edu
Jason Clark
Research Assistant III
Phone: (319) 335-9729
Email: jason-clark@uiowa.edu
Cathy Kane
Research Assistant II
Phone: (319) 335-1910
Email: catherine-kane@uiowa.edu
Jason Clark
Research Assistant III
Phone: (319) 335-9729
Email: jason-clark@uiowa.edu
Ongoing Research Projects
- Eberl - Drosophila deafness genes: analysis of chordotonal organ functions
- Fritzsch - Dissecting the Ear Neurosensory Development
- Green - Stimuli Promoting Survival of Spiral Ganglion Neurons
- Hansen - Contribution of c-Jun N-terminal kinase activity to vestibular schwannoma growth
- Houston - Localized mRNA's in Vertebrate Axis Formation
- Lee - Regulation of auditory calcium channels; Modulation of Cav 1.3 L-type Ca2+ channels by PDZ-protein interactions
- Smith - Non-Syndromic Hearing Loss - A Collaborative Study; Autosomal Dominant Non-Syndromic Hearing Loss
- Rubenstein - Biochemical Consequences of Deafness-Causing Actin Mutations
- Slusarski - Wnt/Ca2+ Function in Development and Tumor Suppression
- Stipp - Dissecting the Opposing Roles of α3 Integrin in Metastasis
- Weiner - Elucidating functions of the gamma-protocadherins in CNS synapse development
