Lab Support Facility
The Lab Support Facility (LSF) at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) supports all experimental labs on campus in their research work. The Life Science Support (LSS) focuses on the particular needs of the groups active in the life science while the Physical Science Support (PSS) concentrates on the requirements in experimental chemistry and physics.
The main objectives of the facility are:
- Provide a laboratory infrastructure for experimental sciences that enables the scientist to apply a brought spectrum of standard and advanced technologies in their work.
- Provide best possible laboratory and surrounding conditions to allow the scientists to focus on their research work as much as possible.
- Provide the necessary infrastructure that enables the scientists to ensure compliance of their work with the current Austrian legislation.
- Provide the necessary means to enable safe working conditions within the laboratories.
- Provide facility services that allow easy access to experimental resources (media, animals, plants, viruses, proteins etc.) and highly specialized equipment at a consistently high level to allow the scientists to focus on their scientific questions as much as possible.
For specific further facility details, please visit the Lab Support Facility web page: lsf.pages.ist.ac.at
On this site:
Services
- Laboratory Equipment Infrastructure
Infrastructure equipment is research equipment that is shared by two or more groups on campus. The equipment is purchased and maintained by LSF funds, but operated by users. - Technical Support
Inspection of non-functional equipment and coordination of repair, supply with technical gases (including dry ice, liquid nitrogen, and liquid helium), support for off-campus technologies - Laboratory cleaning and waste disposal
LSF staff cleans laboratory areas to avoid critical mistakes by not sufficiently trained external staff. The disposal of laboratory waste is also organized by the LSF. - Lab safety
All issues regarding laboratory safety, in particular biosafety, radiation safety, magnetic field safety, handling of hazardous chemicals, definition of safe working procedures etc. are covered by the LSF. The aim is to assist all labs in establishing safe working procedures that are fully compliant with Austrian law.
Equipment
Overview of Lab Support Facility Equipment
Media and Cleaning Kitchen
Media Kitchen
The media kitchen provides services related to microbiology, cell culture and biochemistry. It produces custom culture media, plates and solutions to meet the individual needs of each user. In addition, commonly used reagents are kept in stock to be available 24/7. All media are checked on a regular basis for their sterility and shelf life to ensure reliable product quality.
Cleaning Kitchen
The cleaning kitchen collects dirty glass and plastic ware and redistributes clean and sterile material on a daily basis, five times per week. Custom sterilization of lab supplies, e.g. pipette tips, tubes by autoclaving or dry heat sterilization is offered. Biological waste is collected and autoclaved before disposal.
Aquatics Facility
The Aquatics Facility is a breeding facility for zebrafish (Danio rerio) and the African clawed frog (Xenopus laevis). It encompasses about 1’500 fish and 400 frog aquaria. The fish section started its operations in 2010, the frog operations started in 2020. The Aquatics Facility supports cell and developmental biologists on campus.
Services
- Fish and frog care (e.g., feeding, health monitoring, welfare, etc.)
- Maintenance breeding of specific lines
- Cryo conservation
- Documentation and compliance support
- Cleaning and maintenance of facility
Plant Facility
The Plant Facility supports the plant biologists at ISTA in maintaining specific breeds (cultivating seedlings, growing plants, and harvesting seeds) in defined conditions. Fully operational since 2014, the Plant Facility is where Arabidopsis and Tobacco species are handled for current research projects.
The facility has a maximum capacity of 759 trays and is fully equipped with LED lamps optimized for plant growth.
Services
- Plant care (e.g., watering of plants, pest control, etc.)
- Maintenance breeding of specific plant lines
- Cleaning and maintenance of facility
- Stock keeping and ordering of consumables
Mass Spectrometry
Mass Spectrometry (MS) is an analytical technique which can measure the mass-to-charge ratio of ionized molecules. The current MS service is focused on the identification and quantification of proteins in cells and tissues, as well as the analysis of protein-protein interactions and protein modifications by LC-MS using orbitrap and TOF spectrometers.
Also, the service offers the analysis of organic or inorganic compounds by GC-MS. In 2023 an additional high resolution mass spectrometer for accurate mass detection of compounds and larger molecules (intact proteins) will be purchased.
Services
- Project consulting
- Sample preparation
- MS analysis
- Data analysis
Molecular Biology Service
The Molecular Biology Service was launched 2019 to support experimental biologists with the generation of molecular tools for work in living cells and tissues. In particular, the development and production of different viral systems for gene delivery, including molecular cloning, were the main objective. In 2022 the service was broadened towards protein technologies. This service branch supports all steps from protein expression to purification, as well as biophysical characterization of purified proteins.
Services
- Project consulting
- Molecular cloning
- Virus production and purification
- Protein production, characterization, purification
- User training
Material characterization
The Material Characterization Service provides access to X-ray techniques to analyze the atomic (x-ray diffraction) and nano (small angle x-ray scattering) structure of samples.
For surface analysis a x-ray photoelectron spectroscope is currently being purchased.
Services
- User training
- Equipment support and troubleshooting
Lab Support Facility Lectures
Safety briefing for newcomers
2-monthly interval, 1 hour
Safety training (Bio safety level 2) for IST users
1 hour
Introduction to the use of zebrafish facility
no lecture, 30 min, individually
Introduction to the use of plant facility
no lecture, 30 min, individually
Staff
Margarita Eustacchio
Laboratory Management Life Sciences
+43 2243 9000 1189
Mersija Smailagic
Service Support Lab Support Facility
+43 2243 9000 7413
Contact
Institute of Science and Technology Austria
c/o Lab Support Facility
Am Campus 1, A-3400 Klosterneuburg, Austria
Office: Bertalanffy Foundation building, ground floor
Scientific Head of Lab Support Facility:
Jiri Friml
Contact for facility questions: lsf@ist.ac.at
Contact Manager:
