Arrayit SpotBot® 2 Personal Microarray Robots including ambient and cooled protein edition with humidity control, megasonic wash station and other options provide premium instruments for printing all types of microarrays. SpotBot® 2 Personal Microarrayers utilize advanced micro-robotics to ensure accuracy, ease-of-operation and affordability. SpotBot® 2 will print 1,000 samples from 384-welll microplates onto 14 glass substrate slides (1 x 25 x 76 mm) in duplicate in 2 hours using 4 Arrayit Stealth microarray printing pins. SpotBot® 2 microarray printers are perfect compliments to any microarray core facility and the ideal personal microarrayers for the low throughput research, life sciences, agricultural and microarray testing customer.
Instruments - Microarrayers - SpotBot® 2 Personal Desktop Microarray and Protein Microarray Printers Feature Humidity Control, Megasonic Wash Station and Other Options for a Wide Range of Microarray Printing Applications
Arrayit SpotBot® Personal Microarrayers are installed in hundreds of laboratories worldwide. These highly successful, widely published personal instruments utilize Arrayit patented ex-situ printing technology, empowering customers to print virtually any biomolecule into a microarray format.
Click here to watch our SpotBot® technical video
Click here to download the SpotBot® 3 Microarrayer User’s Manual
Click here to download the SpotBot® 3 Microarrayer Software Manual
Click here to download the SpotBot® 3 Advanced Vision System Manual
SpotBot® 2 Features and Specifications
- SpotBot® 2 offers improved speed, precision and durability over SpotBot®
- 300 installations worldwide
- Axis resolution and repeatability of ±10 µm
- Arrayit patented printing technology (U.S. 6,101,946)
- 4-pin printhead configuration (2 x 2 at 4.5 mm spacing)
- Compatible with all Stealth, 946 and Professional microarray printing pins
- Capacity of 14 standard sized glass substrate slides (1 x 25 x 76 mm)
- Capacity of one 384-well microplate
- Printing routines allow 1-5 spots per sample
- 3,600 spots per sub-microarray (9 x 9 mm)
- 50,400 spots per entire substrate slides (18 x 63 mm)
- Printing time of 2 hrs per 384-well microplate
- >1,000 samples in 6 hours
- Compatible with Windows XP, 2000, and NT 4.0
- Power requirements: Standard 120 or 220 volt outlets
- Ease-of-operation via new version 3 Graphical User Interface (GUI)
- Size (H x L x W): 22 cm (8.7 in) x 30 cm (11.8 in) x 30 cm (11.8 in)
- Weight: 6.4 Kg (14 lbs) including vacuum and peristaltic pumps
Unique Features of the SpotBot® 2
- Only truly portable microarrayer available at 1.0 cubic foot in size
- Installation time of less than 60 minutes
- Arrives pre-calibrated from our California laboratories
- Only system that uses micro-robotics for motion control
- “Zero” thermal emission, ultra-low energy consumption and quiet operation
- Uses a forced air stream for pin drying, providing "zero" sample carry-over
- Super fast humidity control of 5% per minute and ±1% at steady state
- Ultra-low wash buffer consumption of <1.0 liter per 8 hours of operation
- Ultra-low air turbulence minimizes sample evaporation during printing
- Ultra-low vibration improves printing quality and eliminates disruption of analytical balances, microscopes, scanners and other sensitive equipment
- Private label and OEM packages available to volume customers
- Only personal microarrayer in the world
SpotBot® 2 Components
- 1 SpotBot® 2 Personal Microarrayer
- 1 professional 4-pin printhead
- 4 946MP4 microarray printing pins or customer choice of any pin tip size
- 1 calibration pin (to check factory or customer calibration)
- 1 substrate slide locator L-bracket
- 4 anti-vibration pads (place one under each instrument foot)
- 1 air compressor to power the dry station
- 1 peristaltic pump to power the wash station
- 1 complete tubing set (installed at factory)
- 1 wash buffer reservoir (1 liter capacity)
- 1 waste buffer container (1 liter capacity)
- 1 liter of 1X SpotBot® 2 wash buffer
- 1 x 50 ml of 2X Micro Spotting Solution Plus
- 1 x 25 SuperAmine Microarray Substrate Sliides for test printing
- 1 x 384-well microplate
- 1 voltage converter (110-220 volt)
- 1 COM port data transfer cable
- 1 SpotSuite software installation CD
- 1 calibration CD (must be installed by the customer prior to operation!)
- full one-year parts and warranty package (extra charge)
- (Option) SpotBot® 2 Complete Desktop Manufacturing System
- (Option) SpotBot® 2 Protein Edition with Cooled Platen
- (Option) Humidity Control Apparatus
- (Option) Megasonic Wash Station
SpotBot® 2 Complete Components
- SpotBot® 2 Personal Microarrayer components
- ArrayIt Hybridization Cassette
- High Throughput Wash Station
- Microarray High Speed Mini Centrifuge
SpotBot® 2 Protein Edition Components
- SpotBot® 2 Personal Microarrayer components
- Built-in cooling (4°C) and humidity control (10-80% RH)
- Hygrometer and thermometer for measuring relative humidity and temperature
Important Technical Note
SpotBot® 2 Personal Microarrayers are calibrated in our laboratories in California to ensure proper Z-axis height over the substrates and platen, and correct pin placement in the wash and dry station, and 384-well microplate. These calibration files are provided on a compact disc in addition to the SpotSuite 3 installer CD. Calibration files are unique to your system and must be installed prior to operating your SpotBot® 2 system.
Figure 1. SpotBot® 2 printed circuit board. Shown is the printed circuit board and operation lights of the SpotBot® 2. Operation is computer-controlled and fully automated. The printhead shown in this photograph contains a calibration pin in the first of 4 pin apertures.
Figure 2. Shown is the wash and dry station of the SpotBot® 2, with the wash port (left) and the drying port (right). The printhead containing 4 Stealth microarray printing pins is fully inserted into the dry station in this photograph such that the collars rise above the top surface of the printhead by about 1.0 mm. Customers can also use 946 microarray pins with extended collars for ease-of-handling and greater printing precision. A forced air stream generated by the SpotBot® 2 Air Compressor dries each pin independently, essentially eliminating sample carry-over. Cross-contamination can be further reduced with the Megasonic Wash Station option, a highly recommended option for exacting users and protein microarray applications.
Figure 3. Shown is the SpotBot® 2 in the sample loading position. After the wash/dry step, the 4-pin printhead moves over the first loading position in the 384-well microplate, lowers to the bottom of the plate, and pauses for 3 seconds allowing the samples load into the pin tips by capillary action. Each pin loads 0.2 µl of sample using the SMP4 or 946MP4 pin design. The recommended sample volume is 5-10 µl per well in a 384-well microplate. The SpotBot® 2 will print an entire 384-well plate across 14 substrate slides (1 x 25 x 76 mm) in less than 2 hours.
Figure 4. Microarray printed with dilutions of Arrayit Green540 and Red640 fluorescent dyes using the SpotBot® 2 equipped with four 946MP4 pins and a 946PH4 printhead. All samples were printed in quintuplicate at 200-µm center-to-center spacing on SuperAmine Substrate Slides. The uniformity of the rows and columns of printed spots reveals the excellent printing performance of the SpotBot® 2. The space bar denotes 500 µm in the image.
Figure 5. Multiple microarrays per substrate slide printed with a SpotBot® 2 Personal Microarray Robot. Shown is a photograph of the SpotBot® 2 platen containing SuperAmine Microarray Substrate Slides printed with a SpotBot® 2 Personal Microarrayer running 946MP4 Pins printing at 175 µm spacing. A total of 24 microarrays per substrate slide were printed using the Multiple Microarray Format SpoCLe Generator version 1.1.02, which can be downloaded at http:// www.spotsupport.com.
Figure 6. Multiple Microarray Format SpoCLe Generator version 1.1.02 allows the printing of multiple microarrays per substrate slide with SpotBot 2 Personal Microarrayers (see Fig. 5). Shown is a screenshot of the software interface. The user selects the number of microarrays or “well pattern”, spot spacing in microns, print offsets in millimeters, and subgrid dimensions as columns and rows. The software then generates a graphic showing how the printed microarrays (orange icons) will appear on the substrate slides. The Multiple Microarray Format SpoCLe Generator version 1.1.02 can be downloaded at www.spotsupport.com.
Figure 7. Shown is a photograph of the peristaltic pump used on SpotBot®2 Personal Microarrayers. Tubing colors should be configured as shown. The speed dial should be set to the right (CW, clockwise setting) for correct buffer flow into the wash station. Pumps are either 12 rpm or 100 rpm as designated on the back of the instrument under “speed”. A proper buffer flow rate of 1.0 ml/min into the SpotBot®2 wash station is achieved using dial setting 8 (12 rpm pump) or dial setting 1 (100 rpm pump, shown here). Tubing connections (not shown) should be green-green, blue-blue, yellow-yellow, and white-white as designated on the tubing ends and hardware: green-green = peristaltic pump intake to wash buffer reservoir; blue-blue = peristaltic pump intake to wash station outlet; white-white = peristaltic pump outlet to wash station intake; yellow-yellow = peristaltic pump outlet to wash waste container.
Figure 8. Shown is a photograph of the SpotBot®2 Personal Microarrayer including the accessories. The translucent wash buffer reservoir, orange air compressor for the dry station, silver peristaltic pump for the wash station, silver megasonic power supply and humidification system including the orange air compressor, humidification reservoir and gray valve are shown correctly configured behind the instrument. The modular and compact accessories improve system utility and performance and simplify maintenance and repair. Inside the instrument, the microplate, L-bracket and temperature/humidity pen are visible.
Figure 9. Shown is a photograph of the SpotBot®2 Personal Microarrayer including the accessories. The translucent wash buffer reservoir, orange air compressor for the dry station, silver peristaltic pump for the wash station, silver megasonic power supply and humidification system including the orange air compressor and humidification reservoir are shown correctly configured behind the instrument. The COM cable, power supply, dry station fitting (red), wash buffer fitting (white), waste buffer outtake (blue), and humidification tubing are shown correctly attached to the back of the instrument. The modular and compact accessories design improves system utility and performance and simplifies maintenance and repair.
Figure 10. SpotBot®2 microplate printing. SpotBot®2 Personal Microarrayers enable microarray printing into 96-well microplates (shown) and 384-well microplates as well as onto microplate-sized glass substrates using the standard SpotBot®2 components and Well Plate Printing Spocle Generator v2.0.2 software running on SpotApp v3.5.7. Microplate printing software can be downloaded at http:// www.spotsupport.com. Microplate printing requires the microplate L-bracket locator (Cat. MLS) to hold the microplate in position during printing, and utilizes two pre-print substrates as shown here. System calibration is required prior to printing. Please do not attempt microplate printing prior to system calibration.
Humidification Option Protocol
Parts List
- Pump, needle valve, tubing, air diffuser assembly
- 1000 ml Erlenmeyer flask, tubing assembly
- Digital hygrometer
The pump, needle valve, tubing assembly and flask/tubing assembly have been partially assembled prior to shipping to ensure easy and efficient set-up.
Step 1. Fill the 1000 ml Erlenmeyer flask to the 900 ml mark with distilled water.
Step 2. Insert air diffuser into the flask and fit the black stopper snuggly into the flask opening. The flask is now assembled to the orange air pump.
Step 3. Attach the loose end of the tubing extending from the flask arm to the single white barb on the rear of the SpotBot®. The apparatus is now completely assembled.
Printing with Humidification
Prior to starting the print run it is advisable to raise and stabilize the humidity inside the SpotBot® to the desired level.
Step 1. Insert the substrates onto the SpotBot® platen and secure them using the Substrate Locator.
Step 2. Place the supplied hygrometer inside the SpotBot® chamber just inside the front door placed parallel to the door in front of the substrates and substrate locator bar with the display facing the ceiling. Close all SpotBot® doors.
Important Note: Proper placement of the hygrometer is critical since an improperly placed device may interfere with SpotBot® printhead or mechanics and may result in serious damage to the unit.
Step 3. Plug the air pump into a power supply and flip on the power switch. You should immediately observe air bubbling through the water inside the flask and an increase in humidity inside the SpotBot® chamber.
Step 4. Adjust the airflow through the flask by tightening or loosening the needle valve regulating knob. To raise humidity quickly, open the needle valve completely. This will raise the humidity approximately 1% every 20 seconds. Once the desired level is attached, adjust the needle value down to maintain the desired level. Dryer conditions will require the valve to be more open. Humidity can be controlled within one percent of the desired level.
Step 5. When the desired level has been stabilized, insert the first microplate and begin your print run.
Note: Some humidity is likely to be lost when the SpotBot® door is opened. After closing the door it may make a few minutes to stabilize the humidity to the desired level.
Troubleshooting Tips
1. The pump has been running for 5 minutes or longer and no change is reflected on the hygrometer display.
No power to pump. Make sure pump is attached to working power source and switch is in the ON position.
Needle valve is closed. Loosen needle valve knob by turning to the left.
Tubing is clogged. Methodically disconnect tubing at each joint and check for airflow.
Hygrometer is faulty. Remove hygrometer from SpotBot® chamber and check power by turn power off and on. Hold in reset button until you see display without min or max designation.
2. Humidity in SpotBot® chamber is too low.
Too little airflow through system. Loosen the needle valve regulating knob by turning knob to the left until desired humidity level is reached.
Tubing is crimped. Check full length of tubing for crimping and straighten all tubing being sure weight of tubing is not causing restricted flow.
3. Humidity in SpotBot® chamber is too high.
Too much airflow through system. Tighten the needle valve regulating knob by turning knob to the right or turn off pump and open SpotBot® doors until humidity is sufficiently reduced.
4. Humidity level is oscillating too high and too low.
Needle valve regulating knob is being adjusted too severely. When adjusting the airflow, turn knob in small increments or decrements and allow 3-5 minutes between adjustments for stabilization.
Megasonic Wash Station Option to Enhance Microarray Printing Pin Cleaning
Arrayit SpotBot® Megasonic Wash Station option increases the performance of the SpotBot® wash station through the use of megasonic waves (>400,000 Hz) provided by a piezoelectric transducer located in the base of the wash station. Instead of circulating the wash buffer passively through the wash station, the microarray printing pins are cleaned with wash buffer in the presence of high frequency ultrasonic (megasonic) power. This SpotBot® upgrade is very easy to install and use, and is superior to cleaning systems that rely on more traditional ultrasonic (25-100,000 Hz) cleaning which is more harsh and less efficient. The microarray printing pin cleaning mechanism relies on cavitation and turbulent liquid flow as shown in the figures below.
Figure 11. Megasonic waves are produced by a piezoelectric transducer located in the base of the wash station. The transducer is driven by a modular power supply, which provides a continuous source of alternating current (AC) power input. The ceramic transducer (rectangle), optimized for geometry and other the physical properties, is excited at its resonance frequency, producing acoustic waves (white circles) and a large number of cavitation bubbles (white spheres) that exert highly efficient cleaning on the microarray pin (gray). Acoustic waves (white arrows) are also propagated through the wash buffer (blue) providing additional cleaning by turbulent liquid flow. The combination of cavitation and turbulent flow remove sample from the sample channel of the microarray printing pin and clean the pin surface by removing sub-micron sample molecules (red spheres) adhering to the pin surfaces. Megasonic waves, which travel at a higher frequency than ultrasonic waves, clean more gently than ultrasonics, eliminating microscopic surface pitting and other forms of surface wear that can occur with some ultrasonic cleaning systems.
Figure 12. Megasonic waves are produced, causing high-frequency cavitation and turbulence in the wash buffer of the SpotBot® Wash Station. Microarray printing pins immersed in megasonic-driven wash buffer are cleaned in a highly efficient manner, essentially eliminating sample carry-over and pin clogging, even when particulate-containing or “sticky” samples are used for protein microarray printing. The wash station must be filled with wash buffer at all times or serious damage can occur to the megasonic transducer and wash station. Please remember to power off the megasonic power supply after each use.
Figure 13A. Data showing 5 blank buffer spots printed on a glass slide, followed by 5 Cy3 labeled oligo spots, followed by 5 blank buffer spots using the SpotBot® microarrayer and SMP4 microarray printing pins. There is no detectable carryover following the printing of the dye labeled spots. The microarray data were collected by scanning the printed microarray slide using an Axon 4000B microarray scanner.
Figure 13B. SpotBot® 2 Personal Microarray Printer default wash/dry programming settings used to perform the carryover study shown in Figure 13A.
Megasonic Wash Station Installation (retrofitting an existing SpotBot® system)
Disconnect all of the quick connect fittings from the standard SpotBot® wash station including the connectors to the peristaltic pump and the dry station air compressor. Remove the standard SpotBot® 2 wash station from the platen by unscrewing (counterclockwise) the four recessed attachment screws located on the top left and right sides of the wash station (see Fig. 12). Re-connect the fittings from the peristaltic pump and air compressor to the Megasonic Wash Station, and attach the Megasonic Wash Station to the platen using the 4 attachment screws by turning the screws clockwise. Connect the power cord and transducer cable to the back of the Megasonic Driver as shown in Figure 9 to complete the hardware installation. Do not power on the Megasonic Power Supply at this step. The Wash Station must be filled with wash buffer at all times or serious damage can occur to the megasonic transducer and wash station.
Figure 14. The connections on the back of the Megasonic Wash Station Power Supply should look like this. Please do not power on this unit unless the Wash Station is filled with Wash Buffer. The Power Supply should be turned off after each printing session.
Proceed to the software installation steps at this point. Run SpotApp from the tools menu to select the Wash and Dry Module Calibration procedure and click “Yes” as shown in the graphic below.
This first step is required to calibrate the SpotBot® to the top of the Wash station. Insert the test pin into the SpotBot® printhead and use the computer mouse to click the lateral and vertical tabs in the Wash Fountain – Upper window (see graphic below) to move the test pin so that the tip of the test pin makes minimalcontact with the top of the wash station.
This calibration procedure sets the SpotBot® “safe” Z-axis height so that pins move freely over the top of the wash station during operation. Click “Done” when the proper Z-axis height is achieved.
The next step is to calibrate the Z-axis height required for pin washing and drying. The Megasonic Wash Station does not have a contact pad like the standard SpotBot® wash station, so calibration is performed using a slightly different procedure. Use the computer mouse to click the lateral and vertical tabs in the Wash Fountain – Lower window (see graphic below) to move the test pin so that the tip of the test pin is 2 millimeter (2 mm) below the top surface of the wash station. This will provide a 2-3 mm deep layer of wash buffer for pin cleaning, due to the formation of a meniscus in the wash station reservoir. Do not calibrate the pin against the bottom surface of the wash station, which contains the megasonic transducer. Direct contact between the Pins and the bottom of the wash station will result in permanent pin damage. Click “Done” when the correct position 2 mm below the top of the wash station is obtained.
The next step is to calibrate the SpotBot® safe Z-axis height for the dry station. Using the computer mouse and test pin, click on the lateral and vertical tabs in the Dry Station – Upper window (see graphic below) to move the test pin so that the tip makes minimalcontact with the top surface of the wash station. This calibrates the SpotBot® so that the pins to move safely above the top surface of the dry station during the pin cleaning process. Click “Done” when the proper location is achieved.
The final step is to calibrate the SpotBot® height for proper pin drying. The dry station has a contact pad inside the dry chamber for easy calibration. Using the computer mouse and test pin, click on the lateral and vertical tabs in the Dry Station – Lower window (see below) to move the test pin so that it goes completely into one of the holes of the dry station and makes minimal contact with the bottom of the dry station. Minimal contact is achieved when the test Pin very slightly raises out of the Printhead, most easily observed as a slight space between the bottom of the pin collar and the printhead. Click “Done” when the correct position is obtained. This completes the calibration procedure and the Megasonic Wash Station is now ready to use.
Notice: Please do not operate the Megasonic Wash Station unless the wash station is completely filled with wash buffer, and wash buffer is flowing freely from the wash buffer reservoir to the waste container. Attempting to operate the Megasonic Wash Station in the absence of liquid can cause permanent damage to the piezoelectric crystal.
SpotBot® 2 Protein Desktop Personal Protein Microarray Printers
Arrayit offers this revolutionary turnkey system for desktop protein microarray manufacturing. SpotBot® 2 Protein Edition (Cat. SPA2PRO) utilizes advanced micro-robotics to ensure accuracy, ease-of-operation and affordability, with built-in cooling and humidity controls, allowing the user to cool the robot to 4°C while maintaining proper humidity during use. SpotBot® 2 PRO will print 384 protein samples onto 14 substrates in 2 hours using four patented 946 or Stealth Micro Spotting Pins. SpotBot® 2 PRO is the perfect complement to any microarray core facility and the ideal personal protein microarrayer for innovative research, life sciences and microarray testing.
The SpotBot® 2 Protein Edition (SPA2PRO) includes a high-performance chiller bath for rapid and accurate cooling of the entire printing deck.
Unique Features of the SpotBot® 2 Protein Edition System
- World’s only truly portable protein microarrayer (volume = 1.0 ft3)
- World’s only turnkey desktop protein microarray manufacturing system
- Installation time <120 minutes
- Create a miniature “cold room” right on your desk
- Flow-through platen cooling maximizes chilling uniformity
- Arrives pre-calibrated from our laboratories in California
- Only system that uses micro-robotics for motion control
- “Zero” thermal emission, ultra-low energy consumption, and quiet operation
- Uses a forced air stream for pin drying, providing "zero" sample carry-over
- Super fast humidity control of 5% per minute and ±1 % at steady state
- Ultra-low wash buffer consumption of <1.0 liter per 8 hours of operation
- Ultra-low air turbulence minimizes sample evaporation during printing
- Ultra-low vibration improves printing quality and eliminates disruption of analytical balances, microscopes, scanners and other sensitive equipment
- Private label and OEM packages available to volume customers
- Only personal protein microarrayer in the world
SpotBot® 2 Protein Edition System Components
- 1 SpotBot® 2 Protein Edition Microarrayer
- 1 Temperature-Controlled Chiller Bath with Cooling Solution
- 1 Humidification-Dehumidification Apparatus (see photo below)
- 1 Digital Hygrometer for Measuring Relative Humidity (RH)
- 1 Digital Thermometer for Measuring Robot Platen Temperature
- 1 Stealth or 946 4-Pin Printhead
- 4 SMP4 or 946MP4 Pins (or customer’s choice of any pin size)
- 1 Calibration Pin (to check factory or customer calibration)
- 1 Substrate Locator L-Bracket
- 1 Air Compressor to Power the Dry Station
- 1 Peristaltic Pump to Power the Wash Station
- Complete Tubing Set (installed at factory)
- 1 Wash Buffer Reservoir (1 liter)
- 1 Waste Buffer Container (1 liter)
- 1 Liter SpotBot® 2 Wash Buffer
- 1 x 50 ml 2X Protein Printing Buffer
- 1 x 25 SuperEpoxy 2 Microarray Substrate Slides
- 1 x 384-Well Microplate for protein samples
- 1 Voltage Adaptor (110-220 volt)
- 1 COM Port Data Transfer Cable
- 1 SpotSuite Software Installation CD
- 1 Calibration Floppy Disc (must be installed!!)
- Full One-Year Parts and Warranty Package (extra charge)
- (Option) Megasonic Wash Station
Figure 15. Shown is the Humidification System for adding humidity to the SpotBot® 2 Protein Edition Microarrayer chamber. An Air Compressor and Humidification Flask power humidification of the internal chamber of the SpotBot® 2 to be controlled within 1%. See Fig. 19 below for the dehumidification apparatus.
Rationale for the SpotBot® 2 Protein Edition “Cold Room”
Proteins have a number of levels of structural organization including primary structure (amino acid sequence, held together by covalent bonding), secondary structure (e.g. coiled-coils and beta-pleated sheets, held together primarily by hydrogen bonding), tertiary structure (overall protein shape, mediated by hydrogen bonding, disulfide bonds, etc.) and quaternary structure (which combines multiple protein subunits using hydrogen and other types of bonds to maintain subunit affinity). Each one of these levels of organization is required for protein activity, and these levels of organization must be maintained during and after microarray printing for successful protein microarray experimentation. In addition, intact epitope structure is a requirement for antibody binding and therefore antigen and antibody microarrays. Hydrogen bonding, a key force in maintaining protein folding, has a temperature-dependant component. Temperature-dependant changes in hydrogen bonding can result in protein denaturation and functional inactivation. This is easily observed when a protein source such as an egg white is heated to high temperatures during cooking. This same effect happens at lower temperatures. The rate of protein denaturation doubles every 5-10°C. This helps explain why proteins maintain their properly folded conformations much longer in the cooled SpotBot® 2 Protein Edition Microarrayer chamber versus traditional microarrayers. Another key factor that diminishes protein integrity is bacterial and fungal contamination. The doubling time of microbes is greatly reduced at lower temperatures, which is yet another advantage of the cooled SpotBot® 2 Protein Edition Microarrayer chamber. The optimal temperature for most proteins is 4-10°C. For the last one hundred years, protein biochemistry has been performed in the cold room. Now, ArrayIt® brings the cold room to your desktop.
Figure 16. Shown is the Dehumidification Apparatus attached to the humidity control port on the SpotBot® 2 Protein Edition Personal Microarrayer. The Air Compressor (orange) pushes air through a user-controlled valve and into the dessicant tube. De-humidified air is then filtered (green filter) to remove particulate matter, and propelled under pressure into the SpotBot® 2 instrument. The Dehumidification Apparatus prevents excessive humidity from accumulating when the instrument platen is cooled below ambient temperature. Humidity can be held within 1% of the desired level. The Humidification Apparatus (see Fig. 5) is ported onto the same fitting as the Dehumidification Apparatus.
SpotBot® 2 Desktop Personal Microarray Printer Upgrades
ArrayIt® offers an efficient and cost-effective way to upgrade all current SpotBot® Personal Microarray Systems including SpotBot®, SpotBot® Complete, and SpotBot® Protein Edition, for a fraction of the cost of a new SpotBot® 2 System. The SpotBot® 2 Upgrade includes complete disassembly, complete cleaning and refurbishing, and reassembly and testing. The Upgrade also includes an extensive list of software and hardware upgrades for increased printing precision, improved performance, enhanced Pin cleaning, and compatibility with sophisticated hardware offerings such as Peltier-based cooling, computer-controlled humidification, and other advanced features. The SpotBot® 2 Upgrade is an excellent way to restore and improve the performance of your existing SpotBot®. Improve your SpotBot® today!
SpotBot® 2 Upgrade Description
- Complete software and hardware upgrade for all SpotBot® Systems
- Upgrade SpotBot®, SpotBot® Complete, and SpotBot® Protein Edition
- Complete robot disassembly
- Complete robot cleaning
- Inspection and replacement of all worn parts (except Pins and Printheads)
- Replacement of main CPU drive board
- Replacement of motor drive boards
- Motor and linear actuator re-greasing
- Wash station replacement and upgrade
- Robot housing cleaning and polishing
- Complete reassembly
- Complete system testing
- Software version 3.5 and Mulitple Microarray Format Spocle Generator
- Compatibility with advanced future hardware offerings including computer-controlled Peltier cooling, humidification and wash station megasonics
- Increased printing reliability
- Increased printing precision
- Better performance on extended print runs
- Enhanced Pin cleaning for reduced cross-contamination
- Restores and improves the performance of all SpotBot® Systems
- Extends SpotBot® longevity at a fraction of the cost of SpotBot® 2
Scientific Publications
Click on the links to review recent scientific publications featuring Arrayit brand SpotBot® Personal Microarrayers.
Recommended Equipment and Reagents
NanoPrint™ 2 Enterprise Level Microarrayers
Microarray Contact Printing Technology
InnoScan® Microarray Laser Scanners
SpotLight™ Personal Microarray Scanners
SpotWare™ Colorimetric Microarray Scanners
Microarray High-Speed Centrifuge
High-Throughput Wash Stations
Microarray Hybridization Cassettes
Super Microarray Substrate Slides
Microarray Purification Kits
Microarray Hybridization and Blocking Buffers
Microarray Print Buffers
Microarray Wash Buffers
SpotBot® 2 Wash Buffer