Eliminating Bottlenecks with the Agilent Encore Multispan Liquid Handler

Transcription

1 Eliminating Bottlenecks with the Agilent Encore Multispan Liquid Handler Louis Murray Applications Market Development & Software Product Manager Agilent Automation Solutions

2 What is a bottleneck? Definition: a phenomenon where the performance or capacity of an entire system is limited by a single or limited number of components or resources.

3 A Few Thoughts on Bottlenecks & Automation

4 Reasons to Automate in the Lab Why Automate? 1. Increase Throughput 2. Increase Walkaway Time 3. Increase Data Reproducibility Both 1 & 2 remove bottlenecks from your workflow Or do they?

5 A Consideration About Automation Automation follows the laws of conservation: Like energy, bottlenecks are neither created nor destroyed. They are simply transferred from one area to another Automation never removes a bottleneck from your process, it simply moves it to another area in your lab Where it moves to will influence what new equipment you may need and where in the process it should be deployed Planning for this can help coordinate your automation and keep it running at maximum efficiency

6 SOME EXAMPLES OF CHANGING BOTTLENECKS. AND SOME CHALLENGES WE STILL FACE

7 Miniaturization 96 well 384 well 1536 well 3456 well

8 Cell culturing for assays... Still quite laborious Some improved consumables help with this bottleneck

9 GAME CHANGING TECHNOLOGIES

10 Sequencing, game changing technology.. Gel Capillary..and more Bacterial genomes sequenced and publicly available. Source:

11 Agilent RapidFire High-throughput MS System The most efficient system for MS analysis Faster Time to Results 8 15 seconds per sample >240 samples per hour Lower Cost 10x less solvent usage Cartridge cost <10 per sample >10x more efficient than LC/MS/MS Easy Operation Compatible with standard LIMS No deviations to laboratory workflow Data output format easily integrates

12 An Example of Moving Bottlenecks in the Next Generation Sequencing Workflows.

13 NGS workflows, throughput and hands-on time Addressing the first bottleneck Agilent Bravo Liquid Handler drives throughput and hands-on time by automating the pipetting and streamlining the protocol with use of on-deck accessories and movement of on-deck labware by the gripper. Hands On Time for Manual Prep Maximum Number of Samples Processed/Day 1 Hands On Time for Automated Prep Maximum Number of Samples Processed/Day Library Prep ² 96 Pre Capture PCR Hybridization Preparation Capture Post Capture PCR Total Minutes per week Total Hours per week ¹Assumes individual tube preps with an experienced user staggering sample processing ²Library prep master mixes done once Example showing throughput and hands on time while automating SureSelectXT on the Bravo Comparison is for automated v/s manual methods

14 NGS Automation Moving bottlenecks from library prep to sample normalization Biological Sample Purified DNA NA Extraction Bravo Normalization Normalized Sample Enrichment Target Enriched Libraries Pooling Pooled Sequencing Sample Sequencing Sequence Data Data Analysis Analyzed Results Encore Multispan + Bravo Sequencing

15 A Typical Nucleic Acid Normalization Workflow Workflow Summary Certain genomics workflows require samples to be initially normalized to a defined concentration and volume prior to further processing Example: NGS Library Prep Sample Requirements HaloPlex: 45 ul at 5 ng/ul SureSelect: 130 ul at 23 ng/ul 1) Assess initial sample concentrations 2) Create appropriate dilutions into TE buffer 3) Confirm post normalization sample concentrations

16 A Typical Sample Normalization Workflow Nucleic Acid Normalization Concentration Determination Dilution Creation Add Stock Nucleic Acid Sample Post Normalization Conc. Determination Tube to to Tube to to to Bulk Low Volume Pipetting Reading Reading Where do we start to automate?

17 A Typical Sample Normalization Workflow Nucleic Acid Normalization Concentration Determination Dilution Creation Add Stock Nucleic Acid Sample Post Normalization Conc. Determination Tube to to Tube to to to Bulk Low Volume Pipetting Reading Reading Where do we start to automate? Liquid handling steps stand out as a major contributor to the workflow

18 A Typical Sample Normalization Workflow Nucleic Acid Normalization Concentration Determination Dilution Creation Add Stock Nucleic Acid Sample Post Normalization Conc. Determination Tube to to Tube to to to Bulk Low Volume Pipetting Reading Reading

19 How Agilent addresses these bottlenecks

20 How Agilent is Approaching Bottlenecks Automate from Sample to Analysis The Encore Multispan Liquid Handling System

21 Encore Multispan Liquid Handling System Address All Bottlenecks at Once Built-In Robotic Arm Robust management of labware both on and off deck Integrate up and downstream processes and create a complete walkaway workflow Have the flexibility to rearrange your automation with virtually no down time Flexible Multispan Pipetting Pipettes twice as many samples with pipettors that can move independently across 2 dimensions A variety of on deck accessories such as plate shakers and temperature control compliments your workflow, allowing for significantly higher walkaway time

22 Individual Pipettor Performance From 0.3uL to 200uL Instrument Specification %CV µl tip (DMSO) 10 µl tip (aq.) 30 µl tip (aq.) 70 µl tip (aq.) 250 µl tip (aq.) Volume (ul) Instrument Specification= 5%CV n=8 for each data point Tested w/ Artel MVS Full aspirate/dispense with leading airgap

23 A Complete Walkaway Solution for Sample Normalization Benefits User definable target concentration and volume Enables inclusion of quantification reagent (e.g. Pico Green) Hands-off Scalable Flexible sample input format (tubes or plates) Final concentration verification

24 Creating a Complete Walkaway Workflow

25 A Typical Sample Normalization Workflow (Revisited) Concentration Determination Dilution Creation Add Stock Nucleic Acid Sample Post Normalization Conc. Determination Tube to to Tube to to to Bulk Low Volume Pipetting Reading Reading The entire sample normalization workflow is now completely walkaway Results are not be affected by operator variability

26 Nucleic Acid Normalization Our results 96 samples normalized down to 20 ng/ul from their determined initial concentration Encore Multispan was able to normalize samples with concentrations as high as 44x with high precision All 96 samples had initial and final concentrations determined with Picogreen reagent Results Statistics Average Conc. (ng/ul) Overall CV 7.4%

27 Thank You! For more information, please visit: Systems/Automation-Solutions/Encore-Multispan-Liquid-Handling-System