Azure Biosystems launches Azure Cielo for real-time PCR

Azure Biosystems has announced the launch of the Azure Cielo™ real-time PCR instrument. This 96-well qPCR machine upholds the brand promise of Azure: high performance, compact design, and intuitive workflow. The Cielo also marks Azure Biosystem’s first instrument dedicated to the genomics workflow.

The sensitivity and reproducibility of the Azure Cielo comes from its innovative optical design. Previous generations of real-time PCR instruments generally acquired data by whole plate imaging or single well imaging. Whole plate imaging can result in lower excitation efficiency as the light is spread out over all 96 samples, thereby dropping the excitation efficiency required for the actual qPCR reaction. Additionally, non-well regions are also excited, potentially leading to higher background, and interfering with sample signal. Single well detection can slow down scan time, and even with the precise excitation, few pixels are actually scanned for analysis. The Azure Cielo utilizes single well excitation and emission, while simultaneously imaging 16 wells at a time. The powerful light source focused on a small region allows sensitive detection in all channels, with no stray light falling between wells and increasing background. Additionally, over 100,000 pixels are imaged from each well on each scan, providing data that is a true representation of the average signal of the well.

The Azure Cielo will be available in two models, the Azure Cielo 3 and the Azure Cielo 6, for multiplexing 3 or 6 channels respectively. The instrument is controlled by a 10.3” touch screen interface, with intuitive software that makes setting up runs and checking run status easy. The compact instrument can transfer data via USB, ethernet or Wifi. For run setup and data analysis, the system comes with Azure Cielo Manager software which offers a complete workflow solution for real time PCR run setup and analysis.

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