Synergy HT: A Unique Multi-Detection Microplate Reader for HTS and Drug Discovery

Author: Paul Held and Lenore Buehrer, BioTek Instruments, Winooski, VT 05404

This poster shown at Lab Automation, February 2-4, 2003

Abstract

Pharmaceutical and biotechnology research requires instrumentation to be both functional and versatile. In the HTS and Drug Discovery environments, microplate-based assays are developed to make determinations on large numbers of samples. Regardless of the assay protocol, the end result is the measurement by some sort of detection device. Towards that end, BioTek has developed the Synergy™ HT Multi-Detection Microplate Reader. Synergy HT utilizes two independent sets of optics to provide uncompromised performance. For absorbance measurements, there is a xenon-flash lamp with a monochromator for wavelength selection and photodiode detection. This allows the selection of any wavelength for endpoint or kinetic measures from 200 nm to 999 nm in 1 nm increments, as well as spectral scans. Traditional visible wavelength fluorescence measurements are made using a tungsten-halogen lamp with interference filters (excitation and emission) for wavelength selection and photomultiplier (PMT) detection. Glow luminescence measurements are also easily accomplished in Synergy HT. If time-resolved or UV excitation fluorescence measurements are required, Synergy HT automatically integrates the xenon-flash-monochromator excitation with the interference emission filter and PMT detection. Typical applications include antibody-antigen binding, receptor-liquid binding, ELISA, nucleic acid quantitation using fluorescent dyes or direct UV analysis. Synergy HT is capable of reading any plate format up to 384-well plates and provides temperature control up to 50° C and shaking as standard features. It is compact (16” W x 15” D x 10” H) and robotics-compatible through the OLE functionality of the KC4™ data reduction software that is bundled with the instrument. An upgrade to CFR 21 Part 11 compliant software is also available.

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