October 1, 2013 (Vol. 33, No. 17)
Fulfilling Our Mission of Making the World a Better Place
by Delivering Innovative Laboratory Automation
When Douglas Scientific entered the laboratory automation scene in 2009, it was uncertain if the startup company could achieve the disruptive outcomes it proclaimed. Within four short years the Array Tape™ Platform has inspired an industry-wide paradigm shift—replacing microtiter plate based systems and enabling scientists to accelerate data generation while dramatically lowering the cost per data point. “We take our mission seriously. We are dedicated to making the world a better place. In doing so, we have redefined the global cadence of discovery in the laboratory and at the point where science adds value, which may be the single practitioner that needs a rapid molecular result,” says Dan Malmstrom, president of Douglas Scientific.
The company earned its stripes with a revolutionary solution for PCR that radically outperforms microtiter plate based processes. Today the Array Tape Platform provides a broader solution with the addition of DNAble® chemistry by EnviroLogix™. DNAble is an isothermal DNA/RNA amplification chemistry that enables research scientists to produce endpoint and real-time data in 15 minutes or less using crude or purified samples. “Combining the proven power of Array Tape with DNAble is a natural progression of our product offering, enabling more researchers across more markets to realize disruptive results,” says Craig McLain, vice president of business operations at Douglas Scientific. “The combination is a complete solution with protocol flexibility, inline automation, and the ability to go from sample to answer at unprecedented rates of speed and cost.”
Markets Served
The Array Tape Platform is being utilized across a multitude of market sectors, including agricultural biotechnology, food safety, human diagnostics, horticulture, and animal health. The company serves some of the largest labs in the world, enabling customers who used to speak in terms of millions of data points per year to obtain a billion data points per year threshold.
Reduced reagent costs due to miniaturized reaction volumes, decreased consumable costs, and a reduction in the need for manual handling allow resources to be redirected to other tasks. These gains translate into a rapid increase in throughput matched with unparalleled savings.
Capabilities
Array Tape is rapidly becoming a ubiquitous media for medium- and high-throughput processing. The patented consumable is a continuous polymer strip serially embossed with miniaturized reaction wells in customizable shapes and formats.
Douglas Scientific offers a complete solution including: Array Tape (consumable), Nexar® (inline liquid handling and assay processing), Thermal Cycling (PCR waterbath and inline modular solutions), Araya® (detection), Intellics™ (software) and DNAble (chemistry). As additional instrumentation is developed to bring these benefits into mid-tier laboratories and point of need applications, the company will continue to drive the pace of discovery across many other markets.
Applications Currently Supported
- Endpoint PCR—Utilizes automated liquid handling, thermal cycling, and fluorescent detection to generate more than 150,000 data points in a single 8 hour work day.
- Endpoint Isothermal DNA Amplification—Streamlines Endpoint PCR and allows users to go from sample to answer in 15 minutes or less with DNAble chemistry. Generate 300,000 data points in an 8 hour work day by combining inline liquid handling, amplification, and detection into a single instrument.
- qPCR—Combines liquid handling, thermal cycling, and real time detection of qPCR chemistries in an automated, inline instrument—reducing cost and improving efficiency.
- Real-Time Isothermal DNA Amplification—Quantifies up to 16,000 data points in a work day while going from sample to answer in 20 minutes or less with DNAble chemistry. Provides walk away operation with inline liquid handling, amplification, and real-time detection.
- Homogeneous ELISA Processing—Provides inline liquid handling, amplification, and detection to generate up to 100,000 data points in a single 8 hour work day.
- And more!
The Array Tape Platform is revolutionizing laboratory processing across markets and around the world. To learn how to realize the benefits of this technology, contact Douglas Scientific or visit www.douglasscientific.com.
Douglas Scientific
3600 Minnesota Street
Alexandria, MN 56308
Phone: 320.762.6888
Website: www.douglasscientific.com
Date Founded: 2009
Number of Employees: 90
