Staccato High Content Screening (HCS) Workstations
Customized system integration
Surveys of the laboratory automation community by the ALA1 have shown that half of all automated systems purchased require some level of customization. This reflects the continually changing and very individualized nature of scientific R&D. The same survey data indicates that original equipment manufacturers are the primary source of this customization. Companies that develop and manufacture automation equipment often have the best expertise to integrate systems and the staying power to support them long-term.
Caliper Automation, Consulting, Engineering & Services
The Caliper Automation, Consulting, Engineering & Services (ACES) team is built on a foundation of 25 years of systems development, manufacturing, and integration experience gained from thousands of installations. Our Application Scientists and System Engineers have over 250 man years experience integrating applications in drug discovery, including cell-based assays, and can review your needs to create system requirement specifications tailored to your situation. Whether the goal is to ‘re-purpose’ existing equipment or purchase new equipment, the ACES Integrated Systems Group (ISG) will create a system concept that incorporates best-in-class hardware and software and is cost effective.
Caliper works closely with the customer throughout an integration project to ensure that the design, build and installation meet and exceed expectations. The Caliper ACES approach ensures you total flexibility for future expansion and reconfiguration to meet unforeseen needs, changes in methods, and increased throughput & capacity. We are there to provide timely and reliable long-term global systems support through highly skilled & trained field service engineers.
HCS system integration
High Content Screening (HCS) is an application area that benefits significantly from the consistency and labor savings offered by integrating liquid handling, plate management, sample tracking, incubation and plate imaging into a fully automated assay system. HCS imaging technology is evolving rapidly and Caliper maintains strong relationships with these instrument vendors, making us a partner of choice to ensure reliable delivery and support for integration projects. We have successfully delivered systems involving HCS equipment
from: 2,3,4,5
• ThermoFisher Cellomics® Arrayscan®
• Perkin Elmer® Opera®
• BD Biosciences Pathway™
• TTP LabTech Acumen®
• MDS Analytical Technologies ImageXpress®
• GE- IN Cell Analyzer
• BD Pathway 435 Bioimager - Twister II
HCS solutions are available in Caliper’s Staccato, Ensemble or Reprise systems. Staccato systems utilize Caliper’s Sciclone G3 or Zephyr liquid handlers, Twister II plate moving robot, iLinkPro integration, method create and scheduling software as well as iBLOX modular table foundations. Other peripheral devices, such as incubators and bar code readers can be included as needed. While Staccato systems are largely based upon Caliper’s choice of ‘best-in-class’ solutions, our Ensemble systems are often comprised of equipment specified by our users and may include a variety of liquid handlers, robots or software from third party manufacturers. This approach allows customers to tailor solutions around their definition of ‘best-in-class’ technology. And finally, Caliper’s Reprise systems offer customers the ability to re-purpose existing assets into new automated solutions, breathing new life into existing assets.
References:
1. 2006 ALA Survey on Industrial Laboratory Automation, S.D. Hamilton, JALA 12 2007, 239-246
2. High Throughput Confocal Microscopy for Arrestin–Green Fluorescent Protein Translocation G Protein Coupled Receptor Assays Using the Evotec Opera, R. J. Garippa, A. F. Hoffman, G. Gradl, and A. Kirsch, Methods In Enzymology, 414 2006, 99-120
3. Identification of a Small Molecule That Induces Mitotic Arrest Using a Simplified High-Content Screening Assay and Data Analysis Method, C. J.Wilson, Y. Si, C.. Thompson, A. Smellie, M. Ashwell, J. Liu, P. Ye, D. Yohannes, and S. Ng, Journal of Biomolecular Screening 11 2006, 21-28
4. High-Content Image-Based Screening for Small-Molecule Chaperone Amplifiers in Heat Shock, Q. Au, P. Kanchanastit, J. Barber, S. Ng and B. Zhang, Journal of Biomolecular Screening 13 2008, 953-959
5. High-Content Fluorescent-Based Assay for Screening Activators of DNA Damage Checkpoint Pathways, B. Zhang, X. Gu, U. Uppalapati, M. Ashwell, D. Leggett and C. Li, 13 2008, 538-543
