Information for users
Access to the Biomolecular Interactions and Crystallography Core Facility
The equipment of the Biomolecular Interactions and Crystallography Core Facility is available to both CEITEC and external users (academic and commercial). The user can access the infrastructure in the following ways:
- Instruments under direct access (USER MODE):
In user mode, the instruments are operated directly by the user himself/herself, the user reserves instrument time using planning board (user manual). The user may order a specific material for an analysis from the Core Facility (e.g. SPR chips, MST capillaries) if needed, or use his/her own material. In the majority of cases, no additional material is needed to perform measurements.
Instrument users must undergo initial training which is obligatory and comply with the Core Facility rules. The training is valid for 1 year since the last instrument usage.
User mode includes Biacore S200 (surface plasmon resonance), Octet RED96e (biolayer interferometry), multichannel SPR imaging system (surface plasmon resonance), DelsaMax Core (dynamic light scattering), SpectroLight 600 (dynamic light scattering), Jasco J-815 (circular dichroism spectroscopy), VP-ITC (isothermal titration calorimetry), VP-DSC (differential scanning calorimetry), TG-40 (gradient incubator for crystallization), Monolith NT.115 and Monolith NT.115 Pico (microscale thermophoresis), Prometheus NT.48 (differential scanning fluorimetry) and CytoFLEX SRT (cell sorter) instruments.
For frequent and/or experienced users, also Auto PEAQ-DSC (differential scanning calorimetry), OmniSEC (analytical size exclusion chromatography with light scattering detector), and ProteomeLab XL-I (analytical centrifugation) can be used in user mode.
If needed, the user may request assistance with the experiment or to run the instrument in service mode (see below).
- Instruments operated by Core Facility staff (SERVICE MODE):
Some instruments (Auto PEAQ-ITC and Auto PEAQ-DSC automated calorimetric systems, analytical ultracentrifuges Optima AUC and ProteomeLab XL-I, BioSAXS-2000, crystallization robotics and X-ray diffractometer, SEC-MALS system OmniSEC) are operated by Core Facility staff and offered to the user as a service.
Services can be booked via CEITEC planning board under the Tickets tab. The user specifies the aim of the experiment and gives relevant information on the sample and his/her preference for when the analysis should be performed. The user is then contacted by a member of the CF staff in order to discuss further details.
Booking of the instruments/services:
The user reserves the instruments and services via CEITEC booking table. Users can gain access to the booking after logging through the account of his/her institution. A simple guide for booking of devices/services on CEITEC intranet can be found on the this web pages of the core facility.
Rules for using CF BIC instruments/services:
Each user of CF BIC instrumentation (either in user or service mode) has to comply with some basic rules regarding the reservation system (booking), training, good laboratory praxis, etc. These are summed up in the special file (click the link below).
Data policy:
Handling of the users' data (created by users themselves or by Core Facility staff during services) follows the Core Facility Data policy (click the box below for details). Core Facility staff regularly (at least every 3 months) backs up the data to the university cloud but cannot ensure day-to-day backup and therefore is not responsible for potential loss of the data through SW or HW issues (e.g. during hard drive failure). All users are encouraged to secure their data immediately after completing their experiment.
Location, booking hours:
Core Facility instruments are situated in buildings C04 and C12 of Masaryk University Campus in Brno, Bohunice (UKB). Detailed information on the location and the instrument time available for booking is available on our web pages.
Fees for using instruments/services of Core Facility:
Users interested in accessing the Core Facility (Czech and international researchers from universities and research institutes) can benefit from the support of the research infrastructure CIISB, funded by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic.
Users from Instruct-ERIC partners (Belgium, EMBL, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and United Kingdom) can apply for access via Instruct access.