Mid-Throughput Focused-Ultrasonicators: When Do 8 Sample Positions Make More Sense?

In many laboratories exists a cumbersome intermediate zone.

They take too long if you're taking one sample at a time. Sixteen or more positions sounds good, but maybe rarely sixteen samples are available under the same conditions in the laboratory.

That's where the focused-ultrasonicators that operate in a mid throughput manner get interesting!

In this discussion “mid-throughput” is not just a number printed on a specification sheet. It applies to laboratories where several samples are usually processed at a time, yet want flexibility to process incomplete batches, varying sample types or varying acoustic conditions.

ال الموجات فوق الصوتية المركزة BoFU-800 from Longlight caters for processing of 1 - 8 samples simultaneously with 8 sample positions, either as individual sample conditions or batch processing. That can be a good example to consider when debating the operational question, not just the technology.

Mid-Throughput is Really a Scheduling Problem: There are two approaches to scheduling.There are two approaches to scheduling.

When considering the number of wells an instrument has, first contemplate what typically ends up on the bench.

How many samples do they get on a typical Tuesday?

Not the most extensive project this year. Not the number that the lab would like to process following expansion. The normal queue is more handy.

In the morning a genomics group can get 4 DNA samples; after lunch, 3 chromatin samples; after lunch, 2 FFPE samples with a different protocol. On that day, the laboratory had actually nine samples, but not one nine sample batch.

That makes a difference in the choice of equipment.

For some platforms, the few extra positions they have may be used for less useful work during a day because researchers do not wait until a complete rack to get started.

In a run, an empty position should not halt the run.

A helpful feature of a mid throughput platform is that it can be used to perform partial batches without creating workflow issues with unused positions.

The free sample-processing mode in BoFU-800 enables the processing of 1–8 samples with the conditions customized for each individual sample. However, it is not in real-time mode, but in batch, which is suitable for samples that actually have the same processing requirement.

What may seem like a small difference doesn't matter as much as it sounds.

The lab should be able to perform six samples if there are six samples ready. If 4 are of one protocol, and 2 are of other and different protocol, then the question arises whether instrument can accommodate actual work or work can accommodate the instrument.

Focused ultrasonication is part of Longlight's قص الحمض النووي / الحمض النووي الريبي portfolio of nucleic-acid fragmentation and NGS sample preparation tools. Flexibility with incoming samples can be as important as the number of channels, in that environment.

There are two different modes: Free Mode and Batch Mode

The term “batch processing” naturally implies that it is more efficient.

Sometimes it is.

For eight similar DNA samples, only one set of conditions need to be entered and it can be processed as a batch, minimizing repetitive setup.

The mixed research work is not like that, however.

Samples from unrelated projects may be given to a core facility. One NGS lab might work with fragmentation of DNA whereas another project necessitates shearing of chromatin. In such a situation, there's little point in having multiple positions, since everything is being forced into one common method.

Thus the relevant comparison is not manual versus batch.

It is:

When does it make sense to use a shared protocol; when does it make sense to have independent protocol?

When the system can do both without making either process unnecessarily complicated, it is a mid throughput system.

You need to have eight samples, that’s eight records!

Another issue with throughput is retaining the knowledge of what happened to each sample.

One tube can occasionally get an operator to remember and retype the run from a notebook.

But with multiple samples, it's not so easy.

Reproducibility includes sample identity, selected conditions, run history and method changes. According to Longlight, BoFU-800 processing information is retrievable after run, which will help to record sample processing. The system also comes with built-in operating system, and no need for an external computer.

This is especially true in the case of shared laboratories. The operator of a method six months from the time of development may not be the same person.

The dependence on memory should then be minimised with increasing sample volume for a mid throughput workflow.

The temperature control system must be capable of functioning throughout the batch.

The addition of positions should not be followed by the addition of uncontrolled sample conditions.

The introduction of acoustic energy into the sample environment by the focused ultrasound processing does involve thermal management. BoFU-800 adopts a low temperature, constant temperature processing system, temperature sensing and temperature control are done in the sample area. It also allows samples to be processed in closed tubes, using an acoustic medium, and not direct probe contact.

The key question to a lab is a "how"?

Is it acceptable for the sample number to be increased without affecting the general environmental control of the validated method?

This is more useful than assessing throughput in isolation to process control.

Actually, do you need more than eight positions?

In some instances, the answer is yes.

When the laboratory encounters samples that are bigger than eight on a regular basis, and these samples are ready simultaneously, switching to a larger platform can decrease repeat runs.

The 16 sample position الموجات فوق الصوتية المركزة BoFU-1600 boasts the same processing flexibility as the eight-position system – it can be used for free 1-16 sample processing or batch processing.

On the other end, labs that primarily do individual research samples may prefer a simpler integrated platform like the الموجات فوق الصوتية المركزة BoFU-100, Longlight places for DNA, RNA and chromatin shearing, NGS genome fragmentation, FFPE processing and biological sample disruption.

That's a more productive choice than "bigger is better.

The capacity that best fits the normal sample queue with the least waiting and unused capacity and unnecessary batching is the right capacity.

Before you select, view the Laboratory for a week.

One of the easiest equipment selection exercises is done without the use of any equipment.

Perform lab observation for 5 working days.

Write down the number of samples received simultaneously, the number of samples that use the same method, the frequency of waiting until you have a batch to form, the frequency of overlapping applications, and what the largest "normal" batch looks like.

The outcome is more helpful than beginning with the greatest number of samples in a catalogue.

In addition to being an independent workstation, the laboratory should also take the role of focused ultrasonication in the context of nucleic-acid purification, quantification and downstream analytical procedures into account.

Final Selection Check

For those labs that need parallel processing, but still have a varying number of samples and protocols, a mid-throughput focused-ultrasonicator is the most logical choice.

Before selecting one, you need to ask yourself 4 questions:

Normally how many samples are arrived together? How often are those samples the same method exactly? What's the value of flexibility per sample? And what about the amount of run traceability that is needed when multiple researchers use the same system?

But the best mid-throughput system is not the one that is half way between two bigger product specifications.

This is the one that is most compatible with the reality of sample arrival at the bench.

الأسئلة المتداولة

Q1. A focused-ultrasonicator for mid throughput is a tool designed to process small volumes of samples with high intensity, yet low amplitude ultrasound.

It's a single-focused acoustical sample processing system for laboratories with a high number of samples to be processed together, but not necessarily processed in large high throughput runs. The capacity varies according to the system.

Q2. What is the maximum number of samples BoFU-800 can process?

BoFU-800 has eight sample positions and can flexibly process from 1–8 samples. It can be individually customized or batch parameters can be entered.

Q3. Are all eight positions to be filled?

No. BoFU-800's free sample-processing mode processes only 1–8 samples, thus it is not necessary to process a full batch of 8 samples.

Q4. What is the difference between free mode and batch mode?

In free mode each sample can be processed using an individual processing condition. Batch mode is designed for the same type of samples that can be processed using the same processing parameters.

Q5. Which situation warrants a laboratory to consider a 16-position system?

When batches are runs consistently larger than eight and samples are typically available for parallel processing, a larger platform can help to minimize re-runs. BoFU-1600 offers 16 sample positions in flexible & batch-processing modes.