Metabolic Phenotyping Core (COM)

Overview of Services

The Metabolic Phenotyping Core at the Penn State College of Medicine provides equipment for the phenotypic analysis of energy balance in rodent models. The Core will allow for comprehensive and quantitative dissection of the effects of diet as well as pharmacological and experimental manipulations on energy homeostasis. The Core is housed in the Department of Comparative Medicine and includes a TSE PhenoMaster system for comprehensive assessment of energy balance (e.g. food and water intake, energy expenditure) with Stellar telemetry capabilities for assessment of vital signs (e.g. blood pressure, heart rate, EEG, EMG) and a Bruker TD-NMR LF110 instrument to assess body composition (e.g. fat, muscle, and fluid masses) in conscious mice and rats. The Core also provides the intellectual infrastructure for metabolic studies.

Please note the following considerations for use of equipment in this core. The assessment of body composition with the Bruker TD-NMR LF110 system takes approximately 1-2 minutes per animal, with an additional 5 minutes needed for calibration and clean up. The assessment of energy balance with the TSE PhenoMaster system can be performed in up to 8 animals simultaneously and requires at least three days of acclimation of animals to the cages prior to any experimental measurements, with active measurements usually taken over at least one 24-hour period. The assessment of vital signs with the Stellar telemetry system requires the purchase of specialized probes from TSE Systems by the investigator. These probes can take 4-6 weeks for delivery and once the probes are received and implanted at least 1 additional week is needed for recovery of the animals. Therefore, the radiotelemetry experiments will need to be planned at least 6-8 weeks in advance.

Leadership

Location and hours of operation

Links and Resources

1. PSU Core Facilities https://psu.corefacilities.org/landing/328
2. TSE PhenoMaster System https://www.tse-systems.com/product-details/phenomaster
3. TSE Stellar Telemetry https://www.tse-systems.com/product-details/stellar-telemetry
4. Bruker Minispec https://www.bruker.com/products/mr/td-nmr/minispec-lf-series.html

Contacts