Skip to main content

The Mitochondrial Bioenergetics user’s facility is housed in the Diabetes and Obesity Theme within the School of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Medicine & Sciences under the supervision of Dr Afshan Malik (Academic Lead) and Dr Hannah Rosa (Technical lead) at the Guy’s Campus, King’s College London, UK.

Our aim is to support researchers investigating mitochondrial function in basic science and clinical/ translational research. We provide training for users, and we house the latest equipment as a multiuser facility available to researchers.

The Facility houses the latest instrumentation for parallel analysis of the two major energy pathways in the cell: mitochondrial respiration and glycolysis, in real time.

Users can quantify oxidative phosphorylation, fatty acid oxidation, extracellular acidification, glycolysis, evaluate substrate utilisation, and other key bioenergetic measurements in live cells.

For further information on the technology please see the homepage of the manufacturer - Agilent.

How to design your experiments and access the facility

  • Look at the guidance pages
  • The experiments are carried out in 96-well plates and determine oxygen consumption rate (OCR) and extracellular acidification rate (ECAR), together providing information on oxidative phosphorylation, glycolysis and substrate utilization.
  • Depending on the scientific question, various substrates or inhibitors can be added during the measurement; ready-to-use kits are available for this purpose.
  • The technique is non-invasive. After the measurement the cells can be used for additional analyses.

Services

  • Introductory training: You are required to undertake mandatory training before you can book the system for use. Please email aakruti.kaikini@kcl.ac.uk to let us know that you wish to be booked onto the next training sessions. Hands on training takes place over 2 days and is provided by an Agilent expert as needed. This is followed by a data handling training session.
  • After you have attended the training you will be added as a registered user and will be able to book the instrument for use.

Research Areas

  • The Agilent Seahorse XF Analyzer system simultaneously measures the two major energy pathways- mitochondrial respiration and glycolysis - in live cells, in real time, producing digital output. Direct functional measurement of metabolic pathways has applications across multiple research areas including diabetes, immunology, infection, cancer, obesity, immune-oncology, drug discovery, metabolic disorders, stem cells, engineered T-cells, fungal pathogenesis, cardiovascular function, neurodegeneration, virology, aging and others.
  • The system can be used to evaluate metabolic function in primary human cells, in vitro cell model systems, organoids and tissue sections, to generate data for a diverse range of research projects.

Facility staff

Dr Afshan Malik

Reader in Mitochondrial and Diabetes Research

hannah-rosa

Technical Manager

Aakruti Kaikini profile

Research Associate

The Mitochondrial Bioenergetics Users Facility includes the Seahorse XF Pro Analyser and the BioTek Cytation 5 Cell Imaging Multimode Reader. Please click on the details below for the equipment specification.

Related equipment

Seahorse-XF-Analyser-bigger
Agilent Seahorse XF Pro Analyzers

Agilent Seahorse XF Pro Analyzers measure the oxygen consumption (OCR) and extracellular acidification rate (ECAR/PER) of live cells in a 96-well format.

cytation5-white-left-open-monitor-zoom
Agilent BioTek Cytation 5 Cell Imaging Multimode Reader

Cytation 5 combines automated microscopy and conventional microplate detection in a configurable, upgradable platform.

Costs of access to the Seahorse facility

  1. Training: A one off training cost of £50 which is mandatory for use of the facility.
    This cost will be refunded /deducted from your charges when you book to use the system.
  2. Usage:
  • The cost per slot is £70 for KCL users. The system can be booked for the morning slot (9.30-12.30) or afternoon slot (2-5.30
  • The cost per slot is £100 external users from academic institution. For industry bookings please enquire.
  • These costs do not include any reagents or plates

We can also provide reagents/kits/plates please enquire for the costs of these.

How to design your experiments and access the facility

  • Look at the guidance pages
  • The experiments are carried out in 96-well plates and determine oxygen consumption rate (OCR) and extracellular acidification rate (ECAR), together providing information on oxidative phosphorylation, glycolysis and substrate utilization.
  • Depending on the scientific question, various substrates or inhibitors can be added during the measurement; ready-to-use kits are available for this purpose.
  • The technique is non-invasive. After the measurement the cells can be used for additional analyses.

Services

  • Introductory training: You are required to undertake mandatory training before you can book the system for use. Please email aakruti.kaikini@kcl.ac.uk to let us know that you wish to be booked onto the next training sessions. Hands on training takes place over 2 days and is provided by an Agilent expert as needed. This is followed by a data handling training session.
  • After you have attended the training you will be added as a registered user and will be able to book the instrument for use.

Research Areas

  • The Agilent Seahorse XF Analyzer system simultaneously measures the two major energy pathways- mitochondrial respiration and glycolysis - in live cells, in real time, producing digital output. Direct functional measurement of metabolic pathways has applications across multiple research areas including diabetes, immunology, infection, cancer, obesity, immune-oncology, drug discovery, metabolic disorders, stem cells, engineered T-cells, fungal pathogenesis, cardiovascular function, neurodegeneration, virology, aging and others.
  • The system can be used to evaluate metabolic function in primary human cells, in vitro cell model systems, organoids and tissue sections, to generate data for a diverse range of research projects.

Facility staff

Dr Afshan Malik

Reader in Mitochondrial and Diabetes Research

hannah-rosa

Technical Manager

Aakruti Kaikini profile

Research Associate

The Mitochondrial Bioenergetics Users Facility includes the Seahorse XF Pro Analyser and the BioTek Cytation 5 Cell Imaging Multimode Reader. Please click on the details below for the equipment specification.

Related equipment

Seahorse-XF-Analyser-bigger
Agilent Seahorse XF Pro Analyzers

Agilent Seahorse XF Pro Analyzers measure the oxygen consumption (OCR) and extracellular acidification rate (ECAR/PER) of live cells in a 96-well format.

cytation5-white-left-open-monitor-zoom
Agilent BioTek Cytation 5 Cell Imaging Multimode Reader

Cytation 5 combines automated microscopy and conventional microplate detection in a configurable, upgradable platform.

Costs of access to the Seahorse facility

  1. Training: A one off training cost of £50 which is mandatory for use of the facility.
    This cost will be refunded /deducted from your charges when you book to use the system.
  2. Usage:
  • The cost per slot is £70 for KCL users. The system can be booked for the morning slot (9.30-12.30) or afternoon slot (2-5.30
  • The cost per slot is £100 external users from academic institution. For industry bookings please enquire.
  • These costs do not include any reagents or plates

We can also provide reagents/kits/plates please enquire for the costs of these.


Contact us

The Mitochondrial Bioenergetics user’s facility is housed in the Diabetes and Obesity Theme within the School of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Medicine & Sciences under the supervision of Dr Afshan Malik (Academic Lead) and Dr Hannah Rosa (Technical lead) at the Guy’s Campus, King’s College London, UK. Please contact: Afshan Malik for general enquiries; Aakruti Kaikini to book training; and Hannah Rosa to book the system.