OUR LAB

MEI Lab operates as an integrated discovery-to-development pipeline that unifies chemical synthesis, lipid nanoparticle (LNP) engineering, nucleic acid production, and high-throughput biological evaluation within a single, coordinated environment. This structure enables trainees to move efficiently from material design to formulation to functional and immunological assessment, ensuring speed, rigor, and reproducibility across the entire workflow.

The lab’s chemical & formulation R&D infrastructure supports rapid, iterative development of ionizable lipids and delivery conjugates through modern synthesis and purification capabilities, including automated flash chromatography with ELSD detection and TLC–MS integration. Newly synthesized materials transition directly into a clean formulation and characterization suite, where controlled LNP preparation and quantitative particle analytics drive systematic delivery optimization.

MEI Lab maintains full in-house molecular biology capabilities essential for nucleic acid therapeutics research. Dedicated cloning and bacterial culture workflows support plasmid construction and IVT-mRNA synthesis, allowing tight coupling of genetic design with nanoparticle formulation and downstream biological testing without reliance on external cores.

On the biological and immunological side, the lab incorporates true high-throughput and high-content capacity. Automated liquid handling and plate-based workflows enable scalable functional screening, while ELISPOT/FluoroSpot assays provide sensitive, single-cell resolution of immune responses. High-content confocal imaging adds mechanistic depth, supporting detailed analysis of cellular uptake, intracellular trafficking, immune activation, and phenotypic remodeling across large experimental datasets.

By integrating chemical synthesis, nucleic acid engineering, nanoparticle formulation, delivery analytics, high-throughput screening, and mechanistic imaging into a single pipeline, MEI Lab provides a rare end-to-end platform for linking molecular design to biological performance.

Trainees also leverage the University of Utah’s extensive shared resources, Health Campus Core Facilities, including material characterization, chemistry (NMR/MS), flow cytometry, genomics, mutation-geneeration, transgenic model generation, pre-clinical small animal imaging, cell imaging, proteomics, metabolomics, peptide/nucleic acid synthesis, 3D printing (including metal), pathology/spatial biology, and advanced electronic microscopy, further expanding the experimental scope and translational relevance.

Together, this ecosystem supports rigorous delivery-science research at the interface of chemistry, nanomedicine, genetic engineering, and immunoengineering, and is designed for trainees seeking deep, hands-on training in therapeutic platform development.

  • UTAH!

  • HTS/HCI Confocal

    ImageXpress Micro Confocal High-Content Imaging System with environmental control for live cell imaging (4X, 10X, 20X, 40X + Cy3, Cy5, FITC, Texas Red, DAPI + Bright Field & Phase Contrast)

  • HTS ELISPOT

    CTL S6 Flex M2 ImmunoSpot - Automatic ELISPOT & 4-Color FluoroSpot Analyzer. Plate format: 24/48/96/384/1536 and Terasaki + Strip plate in 96-well format. Applications: Single-Color ELISPOT; Double-Color Enzymatic ELISPOT; Four-Color FluoroSpot; Four-Color Fluorescence BioSpot; Live/Dead PBMC Counting; Cell-Mediated Cytotoxicity Assays

  • HTS NIR Imager

    Li-Cor Odyssey CLx Near-infrared (NIR) Imaging System for HTS In-cell/On-cell/Membrane WB & RNA/DNA gel imaging. Scanning Surface: 25 x 25cm glass plate Resolution: 21um - 337um 700 Channel Laser Source: Solid-state diode laser at 685nm; 800 Channel Laser Source: Solid-state diode laser at 785nm

  • HTS Liquid Dispenser

    Mantis® - Microfluidic-based HTS Automatic Liquid Dispenser (microtube, microplates for up to 96/384/1536 wells, min 0.1µL/dispense) goes here

  • LNP Formulation

    [Clean LNP formulation Station] UV/HEPA-filtered PCR Laminar flow cabinet with a microfluidic-based LNP formulation system

  • ZetaSizer

    Malvin Zetasizer Nano ZS90 for measuring Lipid Nanoparticles' particle size and zeta potential.

  • Cell Culture Room

  • Chem Hood

    8-feet Chem Fume Hood with fitted Schlenk Line for chemical works

  • Chemistry

    Chem - Flash Chromatography & Evaporation Station

  • Auto Flash Chromatography (+ELSD)

    Automatic Flash Chromatography Purification System: Tyledyne CombiFlash NextGen300+ with UV-VIS & ELSD detectors + Nitrogen generator for ELSD detector

  • Compressed Air & Nitrogen Generator for ELSD

    PEAK Corona 1010 Air Compressor & Nitrogen Generator for the ELSD detector. (Max = 5L/min)

  • High Efficient Rotary Evaporator

    Ecodyst Hydrogen Performance Rotary Evaporator (Dry ice-free, -40C in 5 min)

  • Vacuum Pump

    BrandTech PC 3001 VARIO Select TE VARIO® Chemistry Pumping Unit. Oil-free, min 2 mBar (1.5 Toor)

  • Compact Mass Spectrometer (CMS)

    Compact MS/TLC-MS work station - isolating samples from TLC spot for ESI-MS measurement.

  • TLC-MS Interface

    CAMAG TLC-MS Interface: For transferring TLC samples directly to mass spectrometry for ESI-MS measurement - streamlining chemical synthesis/purification works

  • Automatic Western Blot Processor

    BlotCycler - Automatic Western Blot Processor

  • Refrigerated microcentrifuge

    Refrigerated microcentrifuge (Eppendorf 5430R)

  • Floor Shaker

    Thermo Scientific MaxQ 5000 Floor Shaker for Cloning-realted Works

  • Gel Station - Power Supply

    Invitrogen PowerEase Touch 350W Power Supply

  • Automated Cell Counter

    Invitrogen™ Countess™ 3 FL Automated Cell Counter

  • PCR

    ProFlex PCR System with the 3 x 32-well block

  • Cell Seperator

    MACS MultiStands with OctoMACS™ & QuadroMACS™ Separators

  • Mixer

    Eppendorf ThermoMixer® C with ThemoTop

  • Mixer & Vortexer

  • Vortex Mixer

  • Balances

  • LN2 Tank

  • HPLC Solvent Pump

  • Heat Plates

    General reagent preparation

  • 96/384 Microplate Washer

    Agilent Biotek 405 Select TS Automatic Microplate Washer for 96-/384-well (+cell) washing with Dual-Action 96-tube (8x12 x 2)

  • Cell Culture - Tank Guard

    TankGuard Automatic CO2 Incubator Tank Switcher

  • Cell Culture - Incubators

    Dual Stacked Thermo Scientific Heracell VIOS 160i CO2 Incubator

  • Cell Culture - Centrifuge

    Eppendorf 5810R Refrigerated Centrifuge

  • Electrophoresis

    For nucleic acid gels

  • Heat Plates

    For general chemical reactions

  • Safety Goggles

  • Freezers & Refridgerators

    Various 4C, -30C, -80C

  • Electronic Micropipettes

    Various

  • Single Cell Dispensor/Sorter

    Namocell Microfluidic-Fluorescent-based Single Cell Sorter/Dispenser

  • LC/MS Compressed Air and Nitrogen Gas Generator

    Peak Scientific NM32LA LC/MS Nitrogen Gas Generator