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Dear colleagues,
by the end of 2026, Masaryk University will launch a new research infrastructure – the Preclinical Centre MUNI – located in BioPharma Hub at the University Campus Bohunice. The Centre is currently in its final preparatory phase and it will start offering a broad spectrum of specialized support to research projects since January 2027.
Preclinical Centre MUNI, as a collective effort of the Faculties of Medicine and Science, brings together a broad portfolio of state-of-the-art preclinical services, covering in vivo and in vitro models, advanced cell and animal imaging, pharmacological and toxicological evaluation, histopathology, organoids and 3D models, behavioural testing, cryobank, BSL-3 facility, bioinformatics, and specialized animal models. A primary mission of the Preclinical Centre is to support excellent research and competitive grant applications, now mainly to projects to be submitted to the upcoming calls of the Czech Science Foundation (GAČR) and the Czech Health Research Council (AZV ČR).
We warmly invite researchers, not only across the Bohunice University Campus but also from the whole MUNI, to explore opportunities for collaboration, consulting of experimental design, and inclusion of the Preclinical Centre services into upcoming grant proposals. A more detailed information on collaboration/partnership in the respective areas, both existing and developing, with responsible experts are shown below.
We look forward to working with you and to jointly strengthening preclinical research at MUNI.
With best regards,
Aleš Hampl, scientific director and scientific coordinator of activities provided by MED MUNI
Vítězslav Bryja, scientific coordinator of activities provided by SCI MUNI
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Histopathology and Haematology Unit
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Responsible person:
Prof. Aleš Hampl, D.V.M., CSc.
- Support with sample collection and fixation
- Histopathological processing of tissues and organs
- Scanning slides on a fully automatic scanner
- Examination of blood elements in laboratory rodents
- Determination of biochemical parameters in the blood of laboratory rodents
For more information, visit our website or send us email:
ahampl@med.muni.cz
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Organoids and 3D Models SCI MUNI
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Responsible person:
RNDr. Vendula Hlaváčková Pospíchalová, Ph.D.
- Derivation and culture of ascitoid lines
- Long-term expansion and cryopreservation of ascitoid lines
- Preclinical testing of drugs, including standard chemotherapy and targeted therapy using ascitoids
For more information, visit our website or send us email:
pospich@sci.muni.cz
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Responsible person:
Assoc. Prof. PharmDr. Jana Rudá, Ph.D.
- Behavioural testing of the effects of pharmacological manipulation
- Self-administration of addictive substances
- Monitoring of circadian rhythms
- Development of chronic animal (rodent) models and their behavioural phenotyping
- Future behavioural phenotyping of other rodent models
- Cooperation in study termination, animal euthanasia, and sample collection
For more information, visit our website or send us email:
jkucer@med.muni.cz
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Responsible person:
Tomasz Witold Radaszkiewicz, Ph.D., M.Sc.
- Consultation and one-on-one planning of experiments for GMO models
- Cloning & Plasmids
- Cellular Model Preparation
- Genome Editing
- Mechanism of Action & Pathway Assays (also with collaborators)
- Imaging & Functional Assays
For more information, visit our website or send us email:
radaszkiewicztomasz@gmail.com
- Subunit name: Extracellular vesicles
Responsible person: RNDr. Vendula Hlaváčková Pospíchalová, Ph.D.
- Isolation and characterization of extracellular vesicles (EVs)
For more information, visit our website or send us email:
pospich@sci.muni.cz
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Responsible person:
Assoc. Prof. Mgr. Jiří Šána, Ph.D.
The cryobank provides long-term storage of samples in liquid nitrogen vapor. A wide range of biological materials can be cryopreserved, such as human tissues and body fluids, tissues and fluids from laboratory animals, normal and genetically modified cell lines, engineered 3D organoids, germ cells, embryos, isolated nucleic acids, and more.
For more information, visit our website or send us email:
jiri.sana@med.muni.cz
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Responsible person:
Nikodém Zezula, Ph.D., M.Sc.
- Basic Zebrafish husbandry
- Consultations on the feasibility of Zebrafish-based experiments
- Training
- Injections
- Genotyping
- Sorting of fluorescently labelled fish
- Knock-out (KO) line generation
- Knock-in (KI) line generation
- Basic behavioural assays in Danio rerio
- Basic toxicity testing of compounds
In cooperation:
- Xenograft experiments
- Preparation of samples for downstream analyses
For more information, visit our website or send us email:
zezula@sci.muni.cz
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Responsible persons:
Dáša Bohačiaková, Ph.D., M.Sc.
Assoc. Prof. Tomáš Bárta, Ph.D., M.Sc.
- Generation and comprehensive characterization of hiPSC lines
- CRISPR/Cas9-mediated genetic engineering of hiPSCs
- Differentiation of hiPSCs into 2D cellular models (neurons, glial cells, retinal cells)
- Generation of 3D models: brain and retinal organoids
- Disease modeling of neurological and retinal disorders and drug testing in 2D/3D systems
- Electrophysiological analysis of neuronal networks using MEA and HD-MEA platforms
- Culture of patient-derived glioblastoma tumoroids and co-culture models with cerebral organoids for preclinical testing of tumour migration and therapeutic response
- Fabrication of 3D structures using bioprinting technology
- Expert consultation and methodological support tailored to the needs of collaborating laboratories
For more information, visit our website or send us email:
tbarta@med.muni.cz, bohaciakova@med.muni.cz
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Responsible person:
Pavlína Janovská, Ph.D., M.Sc.
- Consultation of in vivo experiments
- Phenotyping
- Testing of therapeutic doses, basic tolerability assessment
- In vivo imaging of bioluminescence/fluorescence
- Model establishment
- Available models
- Prep of samples for subsequent analysis
Send us e-mail:
janovska@sci.muni.cz
Responsible person:
Jiřina Procházková, Ph.D., M.Sc.
- Processing of tumour tissue into a single-cell suspension for subsequent immunophenotyping by spectral flow cytometry
- Processing of tumour tissue for subsequent cultivation in the form of tissue explants
- Multiplex spatial tissue imaging of up to 16 selected protein or glycan targets using validated fluorescent antibodies (from 2028)
For more information, visit our website or send us email:
jirina.prochazkova@sci.muni.cz
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Surgery and In vivo Imaging Unit
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Responsible person:
Prof. Aleš Hampl, D.V.M., CSc.
- Use of a surgical microscope with digital recording capability (M320 ENT; Leica)
- Use of a high-frequency sonograph (VEVO 770; VisualSonics)
- Use of a triple-function in vivo imager: fluorescence, luminescence, X-ray (Lago X; Spectral Instruments Imaging)
- Technical support during surgical procedures on rodents
For more information, visit our website or send us email:
ahampl@med.muni.cz
- Subunit name: Embryology
Responsible person:
Volodymyr Porokh, M.D., Ph.D.
- Embryo transfer
- Embryotoxicity testing on animals
- Ex vivo embryotoxicity testing using advanced light-sheet microscopy (Leica Viventis Deep)
For more information, visit our website or send us email:
volodymyr.porokh@med.muni.cz
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BSL-3 Unit for In vivo and In vitro Models
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Responsible person:
Petr Bednář, M.Sc.
- Biosafety and biosecurity consultations
- Experimental design for risk group 2 and 3 pathogens
- Training biosafety
- In vitro models of viral infections
- In vivo models of viral infections
- Characterization of antivirals and antibodies
- Decontamination and disinfection efficacy
- Processing and analyses of potentially risky samples
For more information, visit our website or send us email:
petr.bednar@sci.muni.cz
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Pharmacology and Toxicology Unit
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Responsible person:
Assoc. Prof. PharmDr. Ondřej Zendulka, Ph.D.
- Cytochrome P450 inhibition study with RLM
- Cytochrome P450 inhibition study with HLM
- Isolation of hepatic microsomal fraction
- In vivo experiment with premedication of animals
- Determination of basic pharmacokinetic parameters in in vivo model
- Development and validation of methods for determining low molecular weight substances (Mw < 1000) in biological matrices
- Development of a chromatographic method for the separation/purification/isolation of substances from mixtures/Flash/preparative chromatography (LC)
- Microwave synthesis
- Detection of the metabolism of the tested substance by cytochrome P450
- Support in planning the design of experiments
For more information, visit our website or send us email:
zendulka@med.muni.cz
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Immunology and Flow Cytometry Unit
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Responsible person:
Olga Vondálová Blanářová, Ph.D., M.Sc.
- Complex multi-colour analysis of cell populations based on light scatter and fluorescent probes content by conventional and spectral cytometry
- Extensive support for basic and complex cell cycle analysis and apoptosis assays
- Consultations, dedicated training sessions in flow cytometry, operation of flow cytometers and post-acquisition data analysis
- FACS-based multiparameter and multichannel or single-cell cell sorting
- Multidimensional analysis of flow cytometric data (in collaboration with BioInfo team)
For more information, visit our website or send us email:
olgavondalova@sci.muni.cz
Responsible person:
Jiřina Procházková, Ph.D., M.Sc.
- Consultation on the design of multiplex panels for spectral flow cytometry focused on the analysis of solid cancer tissue
- Recommendations for the validation of proposed immunophenotyping panels
- Immunophenotyping of clinical tumour tissue samples using spectral flow cytometry
- Sorting of selected cell populations from single-cell suspensions derived from tumour tissue
- Assistance with the analysis of acquired data
For more information, visit our website or send us email:
jirina.prochazkova@sci.muni.cz
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Services in Bioinformatics
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Responsible persons:
Hana Plešingerová, Ph.D., M.Sc.
Kristína Gömöryová, Ph.D., M.Sc.
- Experimental design & planning
- Data analysis – Proteomics, Genomics, Transcriptomics, Flow Cytometry
- Integrative & downstream analyses
- Structural & sequence analyses
- Data management
- Other – e.g. reproducibility practices, containerization
For more information, visit our website or send us email:
hana.plesingerova@sci.muni.cz, gomoryova@sci.muni.cz
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Responsible person:
Prof. Aleš Hampl, D.V.M., CSc.
- breeding and keeping animals in SPF conditions
For more information, visit our website or send us email:
ahampl@med.muni.cz
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