Grant: Research Tools and Instruments - Category 1 (<$150,000)

The applicants' NSERC research programs study how nutrients and other components in our diet help obtain and maintain health. To do this the applicant's need to accurately monitor small changes in many compounds in blood and body tissues that occur with changes in diet. This requires a specialized piece of equipment. The ARCHITECT i2000SR System enables the applicants to measure many different vitamins, hormones, immune signals and metabolites in a small sample from animals or humans. The technology of the ARCHITECT i2000SR System is highly sensitive and has flexible assay protocols. This technology allows us to customize specific measures to answer different questions about the role of a dietary nutrients or a novel food components. Being able to perform multiple assays at once is cost efficient and enables the researchers to obtain a complete picture of how the intervention alters physiological functions. This instrument will also be used by our graduate, post-graduate and undergraduate student as well as our technicians. These trainees will end up in diverse careers in academia, industry, government and healthcare. The ARCHITECT i2000SR System will become part of a core nutrition facility that is run by the nutrition research group in the Department of Agricultural, Food and Nutritional Science at the University of Alberta.