Eppendorf’s automated pipetting technology helps LGC make the most of real-time PCR

By using an Eppendorf automated pipetting system for real-time PCR set-up, the BioAnalysis team at LGC, the UK’s leading independent analytical laboratory, is saving staff time, cutting PCR reagent costs and completing projects within shorter timescales.

Founded over 150 years ago as the Laboratory of the Government Chemist, LGC has been an independent, privately owned company for the past ten years. Services provided by LGC’s state-of-the-art facilities include chemical, biochemical and forensic analysis, DNA testing and genetic screening. LGC’s BioAnalysis team uses real-time PCR techniques to analyse DNA extracted from a variety of sources, such as bacterial cells and foods.

Dr Gavin Nixon is a senior researcher in the BioAnalysis team at LGC: ‘A recent DTI-funded contract research project in the personal care/clinical sector required rapid characterisation of bacterial populations present within clinical samples. This large-scale study involved detecting indicator microbes and generating high quality quantitative data, in order to make comparisons between real-time PCR and standard microbiological techniques. Manual plate set-up of a 96-well format was not an option because of the limited time available for the study and the need to reduce reagent costs, save staff time and maintain experimental design flexibility. After a comprehensive evaluation of various different liquid handling systems, the team finally selected Eppendorf’s epMotion 5075 LH, based on its flexibility, pipetting accuracy at extremely small volumes and very user-friendly software.

‘With single or multichannel tools and accurate pipetting of volumes as small as one microlitre, the epMotion gives us the flexibility to reduce sample volumes and the associated costs. The newly released epBlue software is very simple and intuitive to use, enabling us to upload new methods very easily and even to manage the process remotely. Significantly, the advantages of automation are combined with increased reproducibility of results and high quality data output – which is vital for the services LGC delivers.’

Geoff Simmons, Eppendorf UK Brand Marketing Specialist, adds, ‘As quantitative PCR techniques become more and more widely used, epMotion automated pipetting systems offer a way for laboratories to maximise the potential of their investment in real-time PCR instrumentation. Reducing reaction volumes brings significant savings on reagent costs, while time saved on setting up PCR assays can be devoted to tasks such as designing experiments and evaluating results.’

LGC found that integration of the epMotion system into assay set-up processes, and the high throughput capabilities of their real-time PCR instrument, dramatically reduced the expected screening study time (excluding the assay development stage) from one or two months down to only two weeks.