Beckman Coulter UK Ltd

Beckman Coulter UK introduces an enhanced Chiral Methods Development Kit for CE (capillary electrophoresis) analysis on the company’s P/ACE MDQ System. The new kit features highly sulphated cyclodextrins (HSCDs) - a family of three chiral reagents that deliver excellent performance in the separation of most neutral, basic and weakly acidic compounds of pharmaceutical and biological interest. The Chiral Methods Development Kit includes a new user guide with a complete protocol. CE uses significantly less sample and reagent than HPLC for chiral separations, while providing broad selectivity and fast results. Documented studies of more than 200 compounds have demonstrated that this protocol provided baseline enantiomer separation for more than 90% of the analytes.

Beckman Coulter UK announces four new cartridges for the PARADIGM Detection Platform, the company’s unique user-configurable and upgradeable multimode reader. The new cartridges increase the total number of interchangeable detection choices to 14, extending platform utility and return on investment for PARADIGM customers. The new options include two additional luminescence detection cartridges optimised for 96- and 384-well plate formats, a new detection cartridge
for BRET2 (Bioluminescence Resonance Energy Transfer) live cell assays and a Rhodamine fluorescence cartridge for a selection of cyanine dyes. Two of the four new detection cartridges expand the PARADIGM’s Glow
Luminescence line with offerings specially designed for 96- and 384- well applications.

Beckman Coulter UK has now integrated its Cell Lab Quanta SC MPL into a fully automated “seed and feed” cell culture system. The integrated system provides data and cellular growth parameters for the evaluation of clone selection, cell expansion and protein expression results. The Quanta SC MPL is integrated online with other peripheral devices and a robotic
arm that moves cell culture plates to the flow cytometer for analysis. Data from the analysis is automatically captured by the Quanta SC MPL’s software for real-time and subsequent analysis and interpretation. The ability to integrate this advanced flow cytometer provides an expanded range of measurements for high-throughput, walkaway
cell analyses, including cell count and viability, apoptosis, cell cycle and cell surface marker.

Beckman Coulter UK announces the successful integration of its Vi-CELL XR Cell Viability Analyser with Biomek Laboratory Automation Workstations and other devices for real-time
cellular imaging in a walk-away system for cell culture settings. Integrated automation adds flexibility to the application of the Vi-CELL instrument, from basic cellular research through
drug development and scale up, and even into pharmaceutical manufacturing quality control. The Vi-CELL XR (extended range) measures the viability of cells and counts them in minutes, using the widely accepted Trypan Blue cell viability tissue culture protocol. The instrument
measures 15 to 30 times more volume than competitive systems in the same amount of time, with a more comprehensive array of parameters.

Beckman Coulter UK has introduced the gTox Flow Kit – a new flow-cytometric approach to genotoxicity testing. This mouse micronuclei assay is designed to evaluate the ability
of a compound to cause chromosomal damage. It detects micronuclei formed from chromatin that are displaced as result of chromosomal breakage. These nuclei are formed outside the main nucleus of the dividing cell. The gTox Flow assay enumerates micronucleated red cells in peripheral blood of treated mice. It is ideal for preclinical drug candidate testing,
environmental testing and other academic and commercial toxicology applications. It is also one of a battery of tests that chemical companies can use to comply with stringent new REACH (registration, evaluation, authorisation and restriction of chemical substances) regulations in Europe.

The flagship Countess of Chester Hospital in Cheshire has appointed Beckman Coulter UK as their managed service provider for the next 10 years transforming the lab into a fully automated, single-site blood science facility. Chester already runs 3.1 million tests a year and needed a solution which was custom designed to the laboratory’s exact requirements. After an extensive tendering process, it chose a total automation solution, installing two separate lines of tracking, including a fully integrated aliquotting module and a 3,000 sample refrigerated
stockyard. The Beckman Coulter Power Processor carries samples to two UniCel DxI 800 immunoassay analysers and three UniCel DxC 800 clinical chemistry
systems.

Beckman Coulter has announced that Cisbio has awarded its homogenous time-resolved fluorescence (HTRF) certification to the PARADIGM Detection Platform. Cisbio’s certification verifies that the detection platform meets or exceeds performance criteria for HTRF assays. A new HTRF detection
cartridge is now available for the modular PARADIGM platform, bringing the growing total selection to 10. These detection cartridges can be interchanged in less than five minutes to
meet different assay needs. PARADIGM is claimed to be the first user-upgradeable and -configurable multimode reader. It is ideal for labs with multiple users and applications. The high-throughput
detector reads on the fly, in formats from 6 to 1,536 wells.

Beckman Coulter has two new IOTest reagents – Anti-NTB-APE and CD226 (DNAM-1)-PE. Both are monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) to cell surface receptors for NK (natural killer)
cell studies, which provide important information in disease research. These new flow cytometry reagents are compatible
with Beckman Coulter’s FC 500 series and Cell Lab Quanta SC systems, as well as other instrument platforms. The IOTest Anti-NTB-A-PE reacts with a member of a newly discovered
family of NK receptors called SLAM (signalling lymphocyte activation molecule), which are important functional receptors in lymphocytes and other leukocytes. In certain cases of NTB-A expression, downstream mechanisms are thought to be involved in induction of T cell co-stimulation and in regulation of B cell tolerance.

Beckman Coulter introduces the MPL (multi-platform loader) option for its Cell Lab QuantaTM SC Flow Cytometry System. The MPL enables accurate, quick handling of a range of plate types, including 96- (flat, round or deep wells) and 384-well, chilled plates, or a 24 ViCell sample cup holder. Enhancements
to the QuantaSC software enable easy setup and programming of the MPL, along with an expanded database capability. The MPL also acts as a pipetting station, aspirating from eight sample cups on a reagent tray. Ideal applications for the MPL option include
high-throughput cell-based assays and cell viability analyses in drug discovery.

Beckman Coulter has been awarded a second grant by the Imperial College London to develop a simple, affordable point-ofcare
(POC) test for monitoring CD4 lymphocytes in patients with HIV/AIDS. This test is needed in resource-poor countries like sub-Saharan Africa to assess prognosis and aid in treatment
decisions for HIV/AIDS patients. This grant is the second awarded to Beckman Coulter by Imperial College London’s CD4 Initiative. Under the four-year grant, Beckman Coulter will work with the Imperial College London to develop the robust new test designed for use in extreme environments and remote settings. The goal is that the new test will involve a finger prick blood sampling methodology and will require minimal technical expertise to decipher.

Beckman Coulter, has introduced two new kits for multiplexed, quantitative gene expression analysis on the GenomeLab GeXP Genetic Analysis System. The new Human Breast CancerPlex and Human MetastasisPlex Kits assay multiple genes from a single RNA sample. Both kits run in 96-well plate format and provide higher throughput than real-time PCR. This technology was developed to fill the gap between whole genome microarrays and single-gene, real-time PCR. With the GeXP technology, researchers can measure up to 30 genes in each of hundreds of samples in one assay, which is ideal for signature validation. These new kits streamline the application of this technology in cancer research.