COVID19 Oct. 1, 2020:
If you are planning to ship samples or begin a time sensitive project, please contact Lisa (heuvlisa@isu.edu) or Jason (wertjaso@isu.edu) before doing so.
MRCF Personnel
The MRCF is a small team consisting of ISU employees and a rotating number of student interns who we train in all things molecular. We work with internal faculty members, as well as external collaborators from other institutes and companies.
Below is information about our laboratory, the equipment we have for shared use and a brief overview of how we were established. For more information about the services we provide, please visit our page.
Lisa McDougall
Research Associate
Office: Gale Life Sciences, Room 463
(208) 282-4890
Lisa is originally from North Idaho, and moved to Pocatello in May of 2010. She received a BS in Biology and a MS in Neuroscience from the University of Idaho. Lisa began her life at ISU working in the lab of Dr. Jack Rose as a Research Associate, assisting with his research program. She was hired as a Research Associate for the MRCF in August of 2012.
Jason Werth
Research Associate
Office: Gale Life Sciences, Room 463
(208)-282-4890
Jason is originally from Blackfoot Idaho, and moved to Pocatello in 2010. He received a BS in Microbiology at Idaho State University. He immediately started working for Dr. Carolyn Weber as a Research Associate, assisting with the RAINS Project. Jason joined the MRCF team in January of 2017.
Melissa Rivas
Student Employee
Office: Gale Life Sciences, Room 463
(208) 282-4890
Melissa began working the MRCF at the end of the spring 2019 semester. Melissa is planning to graduate in 2022 with degree in Biology and is interested in pursuing graduate school in the STEM field. She is excited to gain hands-on experience in molecular biology.
Caleb Wilson
Student Employee
Office: Gale Life Sciences, Room 463
(208) 282-4890
Caleb began working in the MRCF in the fall of 2019. He is originally from Fruitland Idaho, and moved to Pocatello to study at ISU in the fall of 2019. He is an active member of ISU’s Climbing Club and Crossroads Christian Fellowship. He plans to graduate in 2023, and upon graduation plans to attend medical school in hopes to pursue a career in surgery. Caleb looks forward to learning more about molecular biology, and what is involved in molecular laboratory bench work.
Sheridan Hatch
Student Employee
Office: Gale Life Sciences, Room 463
(208) 282-4890
Sheridan joined the MRCF team in Fall 2020 through the New Student Intern Program. Originally from Nampa, Idaho, she moved to Pocatello in Summer of 2020 to pursue a degree in Medical Laboratory Sciences. She is excited to learn hands-on lab techniques that will help her in a future clinical job, or as a future Graduate student studying Marine Biology. Her background experience as a lifeguard means she’s certified in First Aid and CPR, great knowledge to have, but hopefully won’t be put to use while she’s with us!
Instrumentation
Molecular Equipment
Illumina MiSeq Next-Gen Sequencer
AB 3130xl Sanger Sequencing
AATI Fragment Analyzer
BioTek Synergy HTX Microplate Reader (Multimode)
Veriti 96-Well Thermal Cyclers
Bio-Rad CFX96 qPCR Machine
Bio-Rad ChemiDoc Gel Imager and Printer
NanoDrop
Qubit 2.0 Fluorometer
Speed-Vac Evaporator
Electrophoresis Gel Rigs
Multiple Centrifuges, Refrigeration Optional
Vortexers
Pipettes
Microscopy Equipment
FACSCalibur Flow Cytometer, with Cell Sorter
Zeiss Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM)
Olympus Multiphoton Microscope
Olympus Confocal Laser Scanning Microscope
Leica DM6B Brightfield Microscope
Leica Microtome
Leica Cryostat, Motorized
History of the MRCF
The MRCF was established in 1994, and has grown continuously with the aid of significant extramural funding from the NIH and NSF, as well as ISU Colleges and the Office of Research. The first major expansion of the MRCF occurred in the spring of 2002 to accommodate research functions of a National Institutes of Health Biomedical Research Infrastructure Network (NIH BRIN) grant. The MRCF underwent a second major expansion during the spring of 2006 when we were awarded a National Science Foundation Major Research Instrumentation (NSF MRI) grant to obtain more research equipment.
The MRCF has proven to be of critical importance to ISU investigators in the areas of molecular genetics, microbiology, developmental biology, physiology, anatomy, neurobiology, molecular evolution and systematics, phylogenetics, population genetics, bioinformatics, comparative and computational genetics, and pharmaceutical sciences. In addition, because the MRCF is central to ISU's training of the next generation of molecular scientists, both undergraduate and graduate students use its resources extensively. The MRCF also serves the DNA sequencing and genotyping needs of an increasing number of investigators at other institutions throughout the state and the nation.