AR-DMRI Laboratory & Translational Service Centers

AR-DMRI Laboratory & Translational Service Centers

Overview of Services

Mission Statement:

The Mission of the Arthur Riggs Diabetes & Metabolism Research Institute (AR-DMRI) Laboratory & Translational Service Centers is to provide technically challenging cell/tissue resources and complex support services to the AR-DMRI and COH research community for advancing the understanding of the developmental, aging, and pathophysiologic mechanisms for islet and related tissue dysfunction and support development of promising new translational diagnostics and therapeutics for diabetes and other related metabolic conditions.

About the AR-DMRI Service Centers:

The Diabetes program at City of Hope has worked diligently over the past 20 years to establish a host of infrastructure operations and highly specialized technical services critical to supporting cutting-edge, diabetes and endocrine research activities. Early among these was establishment of the Pancreatic Islet Cell & Tissue Processing Service in 2001 (funded/contracted as the Southern California Islet Cell Resource Center at COH), which processes human islet cells from deceased donor pancreata for clinical transplant and basic science research. A host of other complementary support services have been developed to expand the support of translational research efforts in diabetes and metabolism. These services were instrumental in the growth and expansion of the diabetes program that culminated into the present-day AR-DMRI. One of the goals of our late leader, Dr. Arthur Riggs, was to ensure the availability of these services to the AR-DMRI and the greater COH research community. In Dr. Riggs’ memory, we have established five AR-DMRI Laboratory & Translational Services Centers:

• Deceased Donor Islet Cell & Tissue Processing Service Center – Fresh and banked human isolated islets and pancreas tissue, and other non-pancreatic tissues from deceased human donors for basic science research | Contact: Dr. Meirigeng Qi (mqi@coh.org)

• Cellular Manufacturing Service Center – specializing in GMP process development, preparation and engineering of non-islet cells and cell derivative products for clinical trials | Contact: Dr. Angel Gu (agu@coh.org)

• Biomarkers, Histology & Rodent Islet Isolation/Transplantation Service Center – Advanced blood, islet and tissue biomarkers and characterization assays, histology tissue preparations, rodent islet isolation and transplantation | Contact: Dr. Mohamed Elsayed (melsayed@coh.org)

• Radiochemistry/Imaging Development Service Center – molecular biosynthesis, radiolabeling and targeted imaging technology development | Contact: Dr. Junfeng Li (juli@coh.org)

• Clinical Research Operations Service Center - clinical research nurses, coordinators, and regulatory support staff specializing in diabetes clinical trials

NOTE: Clinical research support services are requested outside of iLab, please visit the AR-DMRI Laboratory & Translational Service Centers webpage

Contact: Sachiko Paz (spaz@coh.org)

For further description of services offered and consultation for additional services, please visit the AR-DMRI Laboratory & Translational Service Centers webpage

Leadership

Dr. Fouad Kandeel, AR-DMRI Laboratory & Translational Research Service Centers Director Email: fkandeel@coh.org

Location and Hours of Operation

Arthur Rigg Diabetes & Metabolism Research Institute
City of Hope
Beckman Research Institute

Contacts