Labcyte Announces Partnership with AstraZeneca

Labcyte Inc. has announced a partnership with AstraZeneca to develop an automated pharmaceutical compound management system based on its revolutionary Echo® acoustic liquid handling technology. The new system, which will employ storage tubes compatible with acoustic liquid handling, will be deployed at the AstraZeneca MRC UK Centre for Lead Discovery in Cambridge.

Acoustic liquid handling technology is contactless, eliminating the use of pipettes and reducing compound volumes. Labcyte will combine its acoustic liquid handling with its Access™ robotic workstations to create a compact and fully automated system for the production of assay-ready plates from acoustic storage tubes.

The systems in development will integrate the tubes into the compound plating part of the drug screening workflow, making the entire process from storage to screening driven by acoustic energy and benefiting from the advantages of a tip-less system.

Clive Green, Director of Sample Management, AstraZeneca commented: “Acoustic dispensing will revolutionize compound management by reducing compound volumes by 10-fold. Acoustic tubes represent another significant step forward by enabling a workflow that generates assay-ready plates for high-throughput screening using only acoustic transfers. This should provide an unparalleled level of quality in screening data produced from our biological assays.”

Mark Fisher-Colbrie, Chief Executive Officer of Labcyte commented: “We are delighted that AstraZeneca has chosen Labcyte as its partner for such an important automation solution and have decided to base the liquid handling at their new facility on our acoustic technology. The system that we’re developing for this collaboration will provide unmatched capabilities that can enhance any compound management and drug discovery pipeline.”