Screening Robotics and Automation

Field: Computer Science (Physical Sciences)

This configurable, real-time offering supports most AB SCIEX mass spectrometers and Eksigent Micro and Nano LC products. With three user levels—lab manager, lab director, and technician—StatusScope allows users to view instrument performance and workflow status remotely. The graphical display is designed to enable users to quickly see critical data. StatusScope features user-definable alarm triggers and notification processes that are communicated to the AB SCIEX Technical Assistance Center. Users can access and monitor their instruments from anywhere via a smartphone or other device over the Internet. System diagnostics also can be accessed remotely by the AB SCIEX team for problem resolution. The system also issues regular asset management reports, including service repair history, service contract status, and user-selectable reports. More: www.absciex.com According to Avacta, its Optim 2 platform is an analytical instrument designed to probe multiple protein stability indicating parameters at high speed using ultra-low sample volumes. Developed to reduce the time and cost of therapeutic protein preformulation studies, the functionality of this compact instrument family has now been further enhanced with the addition of two new models. The Optim 375 is intended for the investigation of complex mixtures of membrane proteins, using an additional 375-nm laser source to provide a stability screen based on the chemical reactivity of cysteine residues. The system can be used to effectively guide purification and biophysical characterization efforts—including crystallization—by tracking the exposure of cysteine residues within the protein interior as an indicator of protein unfolding, with the ability to simultaneously follow protein aggregation using the system’s built-in static light scattering. The Optim 445 extends the Optim 2’s sample viscosity measurement capabilities. Using a new 445-nm laser source, the system can be used to characterize the relative viscosity of different samples and formulations in a range of solvent environments, with no limitation on protein concentration. This instrument also provides the ability to follow amyloid fibril formation in parallel with protein unfolding and prefibrillar aggregation, using a combination of tryptophan fluorescence and static light scattering. More: www.avactaanalytical.com/optim-2 According to Cleaver Scientific, the COMPAC-50 enables simultaneous electrophoresis of up to 50 COMET Assay slides, saving considerable lab space and reducing slide handling time by up to two-thirds compared with previous standard methods. The COMET Assay is a procedure for assessing DNA damage. It incorporates a novel method by which multiple slides may be simultaneously manipulated and undergo electrophoresis, in batches of 25 rather than individually. This decreases assay time by 60% and offers users the benefit of an electrophoresis tank with a substantially smaller footprint and more uniform orientation of gels during electrophoresis. More: www.cleaverscientific.com/electrophoresis-products/compac-50-htp-comet-assay-tank According to Genedata, the latest version of this single-platform screening solution provides new capabilities for data analysis of technologies such as surface plasmon resonance (SPR), thermal shift, and combination and panel screens; broadens workflow support; and minimizes data analysis time. It features advanced image management functionality and a newly designed Analyzer module, which optimizes user efficiency and productivity—from loading data to generating final analysis results. Now, Genedata Screener also completely automates processing, from data import to results, which is considered especially useful in multistep data analysis such as dose-response curve and compound combination experiments and in preprocessing for time-series and single-cell data. The new release also offers ease-of-use enhancements, has time-saving features, and enables the platform to be easily customized. Highlights include an Integrated Screener Core, which is a single application for accelerating the complete workflow, enabling complete analysis parameterization, automated result calculation upon data import, and single-click navigation from dose-response curves to well data and back. Screener for SPR analyzes data from any biosensor instrument and standardizes and automates SPR raw data loading, preprocessing, analysis, result generation, and reporting. Screener for Combination Screening computes synergy effects (using Loewe, Bliss) and offers enhanced display of combination results. There is flexible support for panel screens to measure multiple targets or cell lines in one experiment and streamlined image management for multi-instrument environments with fast secondary analysis. More: www.genedata.com For VIAFLO 96 and 384 handheld benchtop pipettes, this row dilution plate holder enables serial dilutions in rows. According to INTEGRA, serial dilution of assay components is a key technique in drug discovery and life science research. Serial dilution can be used to determine appropriate concentration ranges in assay development, to evaluate pharmacological response in secondary screening, and to determine toxicological effects in early ADMET studies. The ability to accurately and reproducibly produce dilution curves is essential to improving assay throughput and quality. Serial dilutions are also regularly used in microbiology when, for instance, initial concentrations of bacteria are orders of magnitude too high to perform a plate count. More: www.integra-biosciences.com or http://youtu.be/PgZ2fNLhG3c This next-generation Screw Cap DeCapper automates decapping/capping of screw-cap storage tubes in 96-tube racks in portrait or landscape formats. The device is able to cap or decap 96 Screw Cap tubes in rows of 8 or 12 in just 60 s, including the recently introduced low-profile screw caps. Other new features include real-time process monitoring and torque monitoring for optimal tube sealing and to enhance sample security. A secure mode further enhances sample security by decapping and recapping only one row at a time, minimizing the time a tube is open and eliminating the risk of cross-contamination. This feature also enables the rows to be paused for point-of-use pipetting between capping and recapping, which can be useful for manual workflows. A new turntable allows tube racks to be turned after decapping for better positioning in pipetting workflows. A laser sensor on the Automatic Screw Cap DeCapper detects the tube height so that no adapters are needed for different tube sizes. The device’s graphical touchscreen interface simplifies programming, and it clearly displays tubes to be capped or recapped. More: http://micronic.com/product/automatic-screw-cap-decapper The LabChip GX can enhance genomics research by precisely quantifying nucleic acids. The GXII Touch helps accelerate the development of biotherapeutic drugs by automating the protein characterization process. The LabChip Touch platform’s top differentiator is its ability to perform electrophoresis in microfluidic channels. The LabChip GX Touch system provides rapid, quantifiable data for pre- and post-PCR sample analysis. The LabChip GXII Touch system quantifies protein attributes from process development through quality control in biotherapeutics development and manufacturing. More: www.perkinelmer.com/labchipsystems According to Precision Biosystems, BlotCycler performs up to 12 Western blot assays simultaneously with high sensitivity and low background noise. BlotCycler automates blocking, primary and secondary antibody incubation, and all washing steps. The system is equipped with up to six trays, with three trays on each side that can process six different primary and secondary antibodies. Users fill the BlotCycler containers with antibodies and buffer solutions, add the blotting membranes, and set the blocking time from 10 min to 48 h. The system maintains a shaking motion for consistent processing. When blots are removed, the cleaning protocol employs a washing routine for thorough cleaning, contributing to assay reproducibility. More: www.precisionbiosystems.com According to Tecan, Fluent is initially focused on meeting the needs of cell biology workflows with end-to-end automation of cell-based and biochemical assay protocols. Fluent is available in three sizes with deck capacities from 30 to 72 microplates. It simplifies cell-based workflows by allowing flexible integration of all the complementary devices required—including incubators, washers, and readers—into a single, fully automated system. Even complex assays can be automated using the platform’s intuitive FluentControl software and built-in touchscreen interface. More: www.tecan.com/fluentAbout the JBS Product Focus ColumnE-mail news releases for consideration to nhallock@slas.org. MSWord documents and 300+ dpi image files are preferred. Deadlines are at least two months prior to publication. JBS editors reserve the right to select the products they deem most appropriate for the section and may revise copy as necessary. Product descriptions are based on information provided by the manufacturer. Inclusion in this section in no way implies endorsement by the Journal of Biomolecular Screening or the Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening. E-mail news releases for consideration to nhallock@slas.org. MSWord documents and 300+ dpi image files are preferred. Deadlines are at least two months prior to publication. JBS editors reserve the right to select the products they deem most appropriate for the section and may revise copy as necessary. Product descriptions are based on information provided by the manufacturer. Inclusion in this section in no way implies endorsement by the Journal of Biomolecular Screening or the Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening.