Automated liquid spotting to speed organoid screening at Vanderbilt
Official title: Automated Liquid Spotter to Enhance Organoid High-Throughput Screening and Therapeutic Discoveries at Vanderbilt University.
Funded at Vanderbilt University · NIH-11421271 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Aimed at speeding up organoid and 3D cell culture drug screening by acquiring an automated dispensing system to improve accuracy, temperature control, and throughput in Vanderbilt’s high-throughput screening core.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Vanderbilt University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Nashville, UNITED STATES) |
| Project start | September 1, 2026 |
| Project end | August 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $250,000 |
| NIH project number | 1S15OD042566-01 |
| Project ID | NIH-11421271 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates include researchers and clinicians at Vanderbilt using organoid or 3D culture models for drug screening or disease modeling.
✕Less likely to help
Patients are not directly recruited; improvements primarily affect research infrastructure and future therapies.
What this research studies
This project seeks funding to purchase the ASFA Spotter V6.7 HE for use in the Vanderbilt Institute of Chemical Biology High-Throughput Screening Core. The device will enable temperature-controlled, contact-free dispensing of complex, viscous gels and cells in organoid and other 3D culture formats, improving consistency and scale for screening. By reducing bottlenecks in sample handling, the core will accelerate discovery of potential therapies that translate to human biology. The work aligns with NAMs and FDA Modernization Act 2.0 goals to rely more on human-relevant models rather than animal tests. The grant focuses on enabling reproducible high-throughput assays that can enhance future translational research.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Researchers could more quickly identify promising therapeutic candidates using human-derived organoid models, potentially speeding translation to patient care.
How similar studies have gone: Other facilities have shown that advanced liquid handling for 3D cultures improves throughput and data quality, though this specific instrument is a newer solution.
Where this research is happening
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Vanderbilt University
Nashville, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Bauer, Joshua a. — Vanderbilt University
- Study coordinator: Bauer, Joshua a.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.