The thermal cyclers needed to generate enough reactions to supply it fall in the high-throughput realm. Along similar lines, Intelligent Automation Systems manufactures a 16-block thermal cycler. High-throughput sequencing technology has been put to good use. Myriad Genetics Inc. of Salt Lake City, Utah, developed its own high-speed sequencing methodology to discover the first major breast cancer gene, BRCA1, in 1994 by analyzing DNA from large, multigenerational families with a history of this disease. Since then, the company has discovered other genes with important medical implications.
High throughput shows up in other places.
This results in a processing rate of nearly 30,000 cells per second. A typical application involves the separation of a specific subclass of cells from a stem cell population for therapy and reinjection. A multitasking robot, the 'Q' BOT handles colony picking in addition to liquid handling and other applications. As an automated colony picker, the 'Q' BOT uses a CCD camera to identify appropriate colonies and then picks them with a 96- pinpicking head. High-throughput applications and the accompanying robotics have also found their way into clinical settings.