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SLAS2023: Lab automation news round-up

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Catch up on the latest lab automation hot topics and new technology from SLAS2023

27 Mar 2023
Lawrence Howes
Editorial Assistant

Editorial article

The past, present, and future of food safety testing – a SelectScience Broadcast

This year, the Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening (SLAS) held its international conference and exhibition in San Diego, February 25 – March 1, 2023. The event brought together scientists from across the globe to discuss the latest developments in laboratory automation and screening.

The SelectScience® editorial team attended the conference, to bring you technology highlights from the show floor and updates on the latest hot topics and trends in the industry.

Some key themes that emerged during the conference included how artificial intelligence may play a role in accelerating the discovery of therapeutics and biomarkers, what laboratories of the future may look like, and how automation can be used to free up scientists’ time so they can focus on performing the science that matters. Read on for key news highlights, expert interviews, and product launches from the show.

Laboratory automation news: Technology highlights

SelectScience spoke to manufacturers and scientists on the show floor to learn more about the latest laboratory automation products streamlining workflows. Below you can watch a selection of key video interviews filmed at the show.

The past, present, and future of food safety testing – a SelectScience Broadcast

The impact of barcoded sample management systems in cancer therapy development pipelines.

Gina Chen, Compound Manager at Ikena Oncology, described how the Mosaic Sample Management Software by Titian has helped to transform Ikena Oncology’s small molecule development pipelines.



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The past, present, and future of food safety testing – a SelectScience Broadcast

Streamlining compound library preparation with an integrated sample management platform

Corbin Occhino, Senior Scientist at Tyra Biosciences, shared how the Mosaic Sample Management Software by Titian has transformed the way the precision oncology company manages its compound libraries.



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The past, present, and future of food safety testing – a SelectScience Broadcast

Increase cell line selection throughput for biotherapeutics with automated clone selection

Dieter Wagner, Product Manager of Cytomat at Thermo Fisher Scientific, explained how the new Thermo Scientific™ Cytomat™ 2 Selector can accelerate your cell line selection while simplifying your workflow with less consumables, and hands-on time.



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The past, present, and future of food safety testing – a SelectScience Broadcast

Dynamic laboratory automation system can easily reconfigure your setup

Shaival Desai, Product Manager, Lab Automation Hardware at Thermo Fisher Scientific, explained how Thermo Scientific™ SmartCarts transform conventional docking methods to connect your workflows, while the Thermo Scientific™ Spinnaker™ microplate moving robot can easily adjust to new configurations.



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The past, present, and future of food safety testing – a SelectScience Broadcast

Accelerate genomics research with this compact, all-in-one liquid handler

Paul Lomax, Head of Genomics at SPT Labtech, explained how the firefly® all-in-one compact liquid handling workstation from SPT Labtech incorporates pipetting, dispensing, incubating, and shaking, making it ideal for genomics applications.



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The past, present, and future of food safety testing – a SelectScience Broadcast

Miniaturize NGS methods with an automated liquid handler duo

Chris Waddling, Field Application Scientist at SPT Labtech, described how genomics researchers can miniaturize next generation sequencing (NGS) methods to increase throughput and lower costs using the combination of the mosquito® and dragonfly® automated liquid handlers from SPT Labtech.



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The past, present, and future of food safety testing – a SelectScience Broadcast

Revolutionizing tube labeling with advanced laser tech

Waldemar Janzen, Global Product Manager at LVL Technologies GmbH & Co. KG, introduced the new Tube Laser Marker (TLM 864) and explained how this instrument can mark tubes with specific information, without the need for time-consuming and non-secure labeling and lettering methods.



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The past, present, and future of food safety testing – a SelectScience Broadcast

Airflow in automation: Custom solutions for enhanced biosafety

Seth De Penning and Drew Pippin from NuAire discussed how a biosafety cabinet is an important complement to any automated equipment, and detailed how a custom solution can overcome the challenges with airflow.



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Highlights from the show also included a series of presentations from key opinion leaders, hosted by Tecan. The presentations included talks on a semi-automated workflow for cell seeding drug treatment and the real-time assessment of snake venom toxicity on a 3D blood vessel model. CN Bio presented its portfolio of PhysioMimix™ OOC Microphysiological Systems and Automata displayed its LINQ platform for fully automated workflows and the transport of labware. The SelectScience team also caught up with ePrep to learn more about its robotic sample preparation workstation for chromatography users and PerkinElmer for an overview of its new EnVision® Nexus™ multimode plate reader.

Scientists’ Choice Awards: Drug Discovery & Development winners announced at SLAS2023

The world’s most innovative and effective technologies advancing drug discovery and development were recognized during the SelectScience Scientists’ Choice Awards® announcement held at SLAS2023. Steve Rees OBE, Vice President Discovery Biology, AstraZeneca, joined the celebration as a special guest to speak about the importance of communication in science. This year’s Scientists' Choice Awards winners included Agilent Technologies who won the award for Best New Drug Discovery & Development Product of 2022 for its Seahorse XF Pro Analyzer, as voted for by scientists around the world. You can view the full list of winners here >>

For more coverage from SLAS2023 visit our dedicated SLAS 2023 special feature page

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High-Throughput ScreeningHigh-throughput screening (HTS) is an automated drug discovery technique for identification of active compounds against a compound library. Use HTS readers and integrated assay preparation / analysis workstations to screen your compounds. Identify active compounds against various HTS libraries, including membranes, proteins and peptides and HTS cell lines. Find the best high-throughput screening products in our peer-reviewed product directory: compare products, check customer reviews and receive pricing direct from manufacturers.Sample ManagementSample management systems include sample storage devices such as freezers and plate storers, sample environment enclosures and sample organization, retrieval and sorter systems. Useful system features include high-throughput, automation, robotic arms, automated liquid handling and associated database systems. Accessories in sample management include barcode scanners, heat sealers and tubes.High-Content ScreeningHigh-content screening (HCS), also known as high-content analysis (HCA), is a high-throughput technique used in drug discovery to identify substances that alter the phenotype of cells. HCS uses fluorescent microscopic imaging and automated image analysis to investigate cellular events such as apoptosis, cell viability, GPCR activation, oxide production, neurite outgrowth, and cell signaling. Find the best fluorescent labeling reagents, cellular assays, and high-content imaging systems in our peer-reviewed product directory: compare products, check customer reviews and receive pricing direct from manufacturers.Robotic InstrumentsRobotic instruments can be used for high-throughput automation of many lab processes. Such processes use instruments for assays like cell based assays and ELISA, for sample preparation like shakers, centrifuges and incubators, and for analysis such as sequencing and western blot analyzers. Useful features of robotic instruments include speed, reproducibility, barcode readers, software and automation.Robotic WorkstationsRobotic workstations are automated platforms enabling the user to perform high-throughput, multi-application processes, from sample preparation tasks such as PCR set-up, DNA purification and NGS library preparation, to integrated sample prep and analysis workstations. Automation makes processes consistent, fast, precise and fully walk-away. Find the best robotic workstations in our peer-reviewed product directory: compare products, check customer reviews and receive pricing direct from manufacturers.Software PlatformsSoftware platforms are useful for various stages of laboratory experiments from data collection to data storage and processing. For instance lab software is available for system control, data management, data analysis and qualification / validation.Automated Liquid HandlingAutomated liquid handling equipment is used to mix, dilute and dispense allotted volumes of liquid into microplates and other vessels automatically. The robotic, liquid handling arms can dispense from single channel to 3456 multichannel as well as operate nanoliter dispensing, enabling high throughput of samples. Find the best automated liquid handlers in our peer-reviewed product directory: compare products, check customer reviews and receive pricing direct from manufacturers.SLASThe Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening (SLAS) is an organization focused on laboratory automation, high-throughput screening, and biotechnology innovation. SLAS promotes scientific advancements through conferences, publications, and industry collaborations. Scientists Choice AwardsEach year, the SelectScience Scientists' Choice Awards celebrate the best products in the industry, as nominated and voted for by our scientist members.AutomationAutomation in laboratories and manufacturing processes enhances efficiency, precision, and scalability by reducing the need for manual intervention. It plays a critical role in improving productivity, minimizing human error, and accelerating workflows in fields like diagnostics, drug development, and industrial testing. Automation technologies include robotic systems, automated liquid handlers, and process control systems that streamline complex tasks and ensure consistent, reproducible results. Explore our peer-reviewed product directory to discover the best automation solutions, compare options, read user reviews, and get prices directly from manufacturers.ScreeningUsing robotics, data processing and control software, liquid handling devices and sensitive detectors, screening allows a researcher to quickly conduct millions of chemical, genetic or pharmacological tests.

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