In Alicante, Spain, a city better known for its pristine Mediterranean beaches and vibrant tourism, an unexpected scientific revolution is quietly unfolding. Tucked away in the Instituto de Neurociencias at Universidad Miguel Hernández, Antonio Caler and Jose Mulet run an Omics Core Facility that defies expectations with its breadth of capabilities and technical prowess.
"We started with just flow cytometry for basic cell population analysis," explains Caler, who founded the facility 15 years ago. What began as a modest operation supporting mouse model experiments has evolved into a comprehensive omics powerhouse. The transformation didn't happen overnight, it was built methodically, experiment by experiment, instrument by instrument.
The facility's journey mirrors the evolution of genomics itself. "We started with murine models that had endogenous expression of fluorescent proteins," Caler recalls. "When single-cell genomics began to advance, we invested in the Chromium technology, allowing us to merge flow cytometry with cutting-edge sequencing approaches." One year ago, they expanded into spatial transcriptomics, opening new dimensions for their users.
What makes this operation remarkable isn't just the technology, it's how much they accomplish with a fairly lean operation. With an agile yet powerful two person team, they support research spanning an astonishing range of organisms: "We work with everything from bacteria to protozoa, fish, snakes, ferrets, chickens, mice, and human samples," Caler notes with pride.
In a modest space with just two specialists, Antonio Caler and Jose Mulet have created an omics powerhouse that handles everything from bacteria to human samples. "Our main advantage is in sample preparation and user training," explains Caler. "We don't just run the machines; we participate from the beginning in designing the experiment."
Mulet, who joined Caler four years ago, complements his colleague's infectious optimism with meticulous attention to detail. Together, they've developed a reputation for turning seemingly impossible projects into successes.
Their secret weapon? An obsessive focus on sample preparation. "Our main advantage is in sample preparation and user training," explains Caler. They've perfected protocols for nuclei isolation that preserve RNA integrity while avoiding the stress-induced gene expression changes that plague enzymatic tissue dissociation methods. This approach allows researchers to collect samples across different timepoints and pool them for analysis, a turning point for experiments with limited material.
The facility takes a hands-on approach with researchers, involving themselves from the earliest stages of experimental design. "We don't just run the machines; we participate from the beginning in designing the experiment," says Caler. This collaborative philosophy has made them troubleshooters and coaches as much as technicians. "We're like football coaches," Mulet adds with a smile. "Training, encouraging, saying 'don't worry, next time we'll do better.'"
Their expertise is particularly evident in their mastery of cell sorting; what Caler considers "the foundation of the experiment." By using flow cytometry to isolate precisely the cells of interest, they dramatically improve data quality before samples ever reach the sequencing platform. "Some users don't want to sort," Caler notes, "but if you want a high degree of data quality, sorting is essential."
This commitment to quality has led to breakthrough moments, including a recent advance in isolating nuclei from cerebellar neurons. "We're working with a specific population of cerebellar neurons that's notoriously difficult to isolate," Caler explains. "Now we've unlocked a protocol that gives us confidence we can capture these rare neurons effectively."
Perhaps most impressive is their self-reliance. Without extensive vendor support "The technical applications people don't always understand our specific requirements" they've become problem-solvers of necessity. When faced with challenges, they simply roll up their sleeves and get to work.
As for the future, they're watching the rapid evolution of spatial transcriptomics with interest, while maintaining their pragmatic approach. They've already incorporated slide-based techniques, supporting users through protocols while providing guidance on data analysis.
In a field where technology evolves at breakneck speed, Caler remains philosophically optimistic: "When I started 15 years ago, you needed 100,000 cells for RNA sequencing. Now we work with ultra-low input, 1,000 good-quality cells is perfect."
What's next? Caler shrugs with the confidence of someone who's seen the field transform many times.
"We don't worry about it. The users come to us with their challenges, and we find a way to make it work."
In sunny Alicante, that's exactly what they've been doing all along.
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