The Molecular Biology Facility Core was originally under the direction of a single individual and most procedures were performed in a single laboratory. With the creation of the USC Genomic Center, the scope of the Molecular Biology Facility Core was increased and two new co-directors were added. The Core Director supervises two technicians assigned to the core. For large-scale projects, additional personnel are recruited to handle the workload using separate funding. In all instances, technicians working in the Molecular Biology Facility Core are directly responsible to the Director of this Core, who in turn reports to the Center Director and individual project leaders. The two technicians assigned to the core are familiar with all projects, even those for which additional personnel are recruited. Projects using the USC Genomics Center are coordinated with the Molecular Biology Facility Core laboratory director and staff through joint meetings and close working relationships with the two co-directors. All projects are reviewed and discussed by the entire core personnel during weekly laboratory meetings and meeting with the research teams of Center investigators. Center members have access to these facilities and benefit from a lower subsidized fee schedule for the Center.

Any investigator named as a Center member, who is conducting research directly related to any of the Research Cores, is able to call on the resources of the Molecular Biology Facility Core. The Center Director makes decisions regarding access to Molecular Biology Facility Core facilities if there is any question as to an investigator's relationship to the Center. In addition, pilot project applicants are encouraged to use the Molecular Biology Facility Core’s services and to consult with the Core personnel before submitting an application.

Funding for Molecular Biology Facility Core supports routine tissue processing activities and small-scale pilot studies. Larger projects can only be supported if additional funds are available from the interested investigators. The Molecular Biology Facility Core Director has the responsibility of determining whether the available resources of the Core are adequate for any given project. Services requiring the use of instruments in either the USC Genomics Center are performed in consultation with the co-directors. If the need for resources exceeds the capacity of the Molecular Biology Facility Core, the Center Director is responsibility for assigning priorities to each project.

The MBSPFC is located in a 600 square foot room within the clinical pathology laboratories at the Norris Cancer Center in space donated by the Cancer Center. One of the advantages of this room is that it was initially designed for clinical molecular biology and includes features such as areas under negative pressure to minimize the risk of contamination by PCR products, and fume hoods to handle toxic chemicals.

A system was developed where samples received in the MBSPFC are logged in using a spreadsheet program (Microsoft Excel). A different spreadsheet file is used for each project. Individual users provide us with a computer diskette containing a list of all the samples for a specific project in an EXCEL-compatible file, which is entered in the Core's computer. The label on each sample is copied manually before the samples are processed and stored. This allows us to verify that the samples received are the same as those mentioned in the computer file provided by the user. If not, the PI of the project is contacted and discrepancies are resolved and corrected. The final spreadsheet file contains information regarding the location of each sample in our freezers. The file also mentions which processing procedures were done and, whenever applicable, which collection method was used. Also included is information regarding what tests were performed and their results. Finally, the file contains information regarding experimental numbers where raw data were obtained. Since all tests are performed at least twice, at least 2 such numbers are entered for each sample. Although raw data are almost always available in digitized form (for example as autoradiographs or ethidium bromide-stained electrophoretic gels that were digitized by our phospho-imager), a hard copy is always kept as well in laboratory notebooks. Computer files as well as hard copies containing raw data are labeled with the appropriate experiment numbers that correspond to the numbers mentioned in the spreadsheet file where the samples are logged in. A new back-up copy of all data is obtained every week and kept for at least 4 weeks.