Automation of biochemical assays using an open-sourced, inexpensive robotic liquid handler

High Throughput Screening is crucial in pharmaceutical companies for efficient testing in drug discovery and development. Our Vaccines Analytical Research and Development (V-AR&D) department extensively uses robotic liquid handlers in their High Throughput Analytics (HTA) group for assay develop...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: George Moukarzel, Yi Wang, Weiyue Xin, Carl Hofmann, Anjali Joshi, John W. Loughney, Amy Bowman
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2024-12-01
Series:SLAS Technology
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2472630324000876
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Summary:High Throughput Screening is crucial in pharmaceutical companies for efficient testing in drug discovery and development. Our Vaccines Analytical Research and Development (V-AR&D) department extensively uses robotic liquid handlers in their High Throughput Analytics (HTA) group for assay development and sample screening. However, these instruments are expensive and require extensive training. Opentrons' OT-2 liquid handler offers a more affordable option (<∼ $10,000) with Python programming language and open-source flexibility, reducing training requirements. OT-2 allows broadening of testing capabilities and method transfer without significant capital investments. Two biochemical assays were conducted to assess OT-2′s performance, and it demonstrated accurate pipetting with low covariance compared to Tecan EVO liquid handlers. Though OT-2 has some limitations such as lack of a crash detection system and limited deck space, it is a cost-effective, medium-throughput, and accurate liquid handling tool suitable for early-stage development and method transfer.
ISSN:2472-6303