South San Francisco, California
April 28, 2008
Fluidigm Corporation today introduced its BioMark™ 96.96
Dynamic Array, a new integrated fluidic circuit (IFC) capable of
performing 9,216 simultaneous real-time PCR experiments running
TaqMan® assays in nanoliter quantities. This new generation IFC
enables life science researchers to achieve new levels of cost
and logistical efficiency and flexibility, as well as
comprehensive profiling from miniscule amounts of sample.
The 96.96 Dynamic Array, the heart of Fluidigm’s BioMark™
Genetic Analysis System, provides the flexibility of a microwell
plate and the density of a microarray in one easy-to-use
consumable. IFCs meter, multiplex and combine nanoliter volumes
of fluids, with precise control and reproducibility, many
thousands of times -- in parallel -- on a single chip. Using
Fluidigm’s 96.96 Dynamic Array, researchers can set up 9,216
experiments with just 192 pipetting steps (as compared to more
than 18,000 pipetting steps when conducting this magnitude of
experiments on standard 384 microwell plates).
“Our new BioMark 96.96 Dynamic Array is our most complex and
most capable IFC ever -- yet it is simple to use,” said Gajus
Worthington, Fluidigm’s President and CEO. “The 96.96 doesn’t
require pre-spotting, so researchers have full flexibility to
select from the lab’s existing assays to quickly and readily
modify experiments.”
The demands of genotyping researchers require high throughput
and high call-rates at very low cost. “The 96.96 Dynamic Array
delivers greater than 99 percent call rates and can process more
than 70,000 genotypes in a day -- all for just over a nickle per
data point (using TaqMan assays),” Worthington continued.
For researchers focused on gene expression analysis, the 96.96
Dynamic Arrays can be used to identify or validate large panels
of genes that might predict cancer progression or help determine
treatment options. The cost and complexity of conducting
high-throughput real-time PCR experiments using conventional
methods limited researchers’ ability to perform the appropriate
assays. Researchers would often choose a small number of assays
to validate. With Fluidigm’s 96.96 Dynamic Arrays, pipetting
workloads, sample volumes, reagent volumes and costs are
significantly reduced. With high throughput and lower costs,
researchers can pursue projects that may have been
prohibititively cumbersome and costly using conventional
methods.
The Numbers Don’t Lie
When comparing Fluidigm’s new 96.96 Dynamic Arrays to
industry-standard 384-well systems using 10 uL reaction volumes,
the 96.96 provides significant improvements in productivity and
efficiency.
- 24-fold higher throughput:
one 96.96 Dynamic Array gives 9,216 parallel data points,
the equivalent of twenty-four 384-microwell plates.
- 192-fold less master mix:
240 microliters compared to 46,080 microliters for 9,216
reactions.
- A 96-fold decrease in
setup complexity: the 96.96 Dynamic Array requires only 192
pipetting steps per 9,216 reactions compared to 18,432
pipetting steps for an equivalent number of microwell plate
experiments.
Fluidigm’s BioMark™ Genetic
Analysis System
Fluidigm’s BioMark Genetic Analysis System consists of
single-use 96.96 or 48.48 Dynamic Array IFCs, loaders that
control the IFCs, readers that detect reactions on the IFCs and
software for analyzing, annotating and archiving the data
produced by the readers.
Fluidigm Corporation is the creator of the first commercial
integrated fluidic circuit (IFC), and the leading developer,
manufacturer and supplier of IFCs to the life sciences market.
IFCs enable the simultaneous performance of thousands of
biochemical measurements in extremely minute volumes. This
“integrated circuit for biology” achieves unprecedented
miniaturization, integration and automation of sophisticated
liquid handling processes on a single micro fabricated device.
Fluidigm’s IFC systems increase throughput, decrease costs and
enhance sensitivity compared to conventional laboratory systems. |
|
