# C-Trap optical tweezers

> **NIH NIH S10** · TRUSTEES OF INDIANA UNIVERSITY · 2022 · $799,400

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
We are requesting funds to purchase a LUMICKS C-Trap optical tweezers instrument, which is an integrated
solution for single-molecule biochemistry and biophysics investigations that incorporates three-color
fluorescence microscopy, optical tweezers, and five-channel microfluidics with a custom user interface for
instrument control and automation. The capabilities of the C-Trap are broad, enabling the real-time observation
and analysis of protein-protein and protein-nucleic acid interactions, liquid-liquid phase separation, protein
folding and conformational changes, cell mechanics and response, and cellular structure and transport. The
anticipated user base is equally broad, including chromosome biologists, molecular geneticists, structural
virologists, and chemical biologists. Access to the C-Trap will quickly facilitate single-molecule experiments
involving fundamental investigations into the mechanisms of DNA repair, transcriptional regulation, protein
trafficking and quality control, DNA replication, horizontal gene transfer, the subcellular localization of
biomolecules, and small-molecule targeting of proteins. In the long term, the data gathered using the C-Trap will
help a large group of NIH-supported researchers to make progress in understanding basic cancer biology, host-
pathogen interactions, antibiotic resistance, protein (un)folding diseases, and an array of developmental and
neurological pathologies related to the protein families being studied. We further anticipate that the C-Trap can
be used to foster a community of single-molecule researchers at Indiana University and neighboring institutions,
as well as to train the next generation of single-molecule experimentalists. Overall, the purchase of the C-Trap
will lead to high-impact publication in top tier journals, enabling users to better compete for extramural funding
and make a positive impact in their fields of research and human health.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10414256
- **Project number:** 1S10OD032191-01
- **Recipient organization:** TRUSTEES OF INDIANA UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Matthew Linne Bochman
- **Activity code:** S10 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $799,400
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-07-15 → 2023-07-14

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10414256

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10414256, C-Trap optical tweezers (1S10OD032191-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10414256. Licensed CC0.

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