Nanomedicines Characterization Core Facility (NCore)

Due to necessary ceiling restorations from Monday, May 6^th, 2024, to Monday, August 1^st, 2024 the following changes will take place.

1. DLS, ZetaView and HPLC equipment will be relocated to Marsico 2219 to ensure continued access and will operate as usual starting May 6^th. You will have access if your badge has access to NCore. Marsico 2219 is within the same building and floor, on the other wing.
2. ICP-MS would be partially accessible during this time, please contact Dr. Sokolsky (msokolsk@email.unc.edu) with your sample requests.
3. All other equipment will not be accessible.

The Nanomedicines Characterization Core Facility implements the CNDD mission of accelerating translation of new nanomedicines into clinic by providing comprehensive physicochemical characterization of nanoscale entities.

NCore is an open resource and functions on a fee for service basis. We welcome users from academia as well as from industry, government labs and other institutions to utilize our experience and our technological infrastructure. We offer:

Nanoparticles fabrication:

• Custom designed microfluidic assembly.
• New instrument is scheduled to arrive: UnChained Labs Sunshine (providing capacities from in vitro to in vivo)

Exosomes isolation and characterization:

• Exosomes isolation from cells media/tissues (precipitation, ultracentrifugation, size exclusion).
• Exosomal markers analysis (western blot, Exo-Check™ Exosome Antibody Array), Proteomics.
• Size, size distribution, concentration, surface charge, purity assessment: Zetaview (ParticleMetrix), Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS).

Analytical analysis:

• Size, size distribution, concentration, surface charge: Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS), Zetaview (ParticleMetrix).
• Materials analysis (GPC): weight average molar mass (Mw), number average molar mass (Mn), polydispersity, structure: Infra-red (IR), Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA).
• Analytical capabilities: High Performance Liquid Chromatography, UV-Vis spectroscopy, UV-temperature correlation
• Protein, peptides, RNA analysis: Capillary electrophoresis (protein purity, isoelectric focusing, Glycan analysis, Plasmid/Nucleic Acid purity, heterogeneity and sizing analysis), Automated Western Blot Analysis (Protein Simple), Gel Imager.
• ICP-MS Elemental analysis: metals analysis in soils, water, food, plants, cells, tissues by ICP-MS.
• Lyophilization: Benchtop freeze-drying system (Labcono, FreeZone 2.5 Liter).

In Vitro Assays:

• Protein concentration (BCA assay).
• Endotoxin contamination (LAL assay).
• In vitro stability analysis.
• In vitro drug release analysis.
• In vitro cellular uptake, transfection and toxicity analysis.

Data analysis and presentation:

• We offer expert opinion related to study design, sample selection/collection and storage, proposal review and development, manuscript development and review.

NCore collaborates with other Cores on UNC campus (TEM, Proteomics, Flow Cytometry, NMR etc) to facilitate comprehensive analysis of the samples.

Leadership

Hours of Operation & Location

Links & Resources

http://ncore.web.unc.edu/

Contacts