Improve Bioprocess Data Quality, Decrease Effort

This article appeared first in BioNews, Eppendorf’s application-oriented customer magazine since 1993.

Have you ever invested a lot of time and effort in sampling your bioprocess, only to discover that an important data point is missing? A data point that should have been taken in the middle of the night when you were not in the lab? Situations such as these can be avoided by delegating sampling to an autosampler.

Bioprocess Autosampler takes manual work off your hands
Let’s take a look at an example of how autosampling can simplify the work of a bioprocess engineer. One of our customers has tested the new Bioprocess Autosampler in an E. coli fermentation process. This user planned a parallel process involving eight bioreactors in order to compare different bioprocess conditions.

Throughout the total process run time of 35 h, samples were to be drawn at eight time points at regular intervals. How could this have been accomplished with manual sampling?

First of all, this approach would have required a shift system to cover the process run time, during which the scientists would have spent a significant portion of their work time on sampling.

This user has been using a DASbox^® Mini Bioreactor System from Eppendorf for some time, and now it has been upgraded with the Bioprocess Autosampler. In our example, BioBLU^® Single-Use Bioreactors were used, but the system is equally compatible with glass bioreactors. Furthermore, it can also be used with the DASGIP^® parallel bioreactor system, if larger working volumes are required.

Autosampling at a glance
Per sampling step, the Bioprocess Autosampler drew one sample from a bioreactor and transferred it to a predefined sample vial, which was stored in a temperature-controlled environment. The sampling device was cleaned automatically, so that the Bioprocess Autosampler would be ready for the next sampling step. In this way, the Bioprocess Autosampler enabled regular sampling 24/7.

The storage position of each sample was predefined in the Eppendorf bioprocess control software DASware^® control and the samples were positioned automatically. This automated method of sample storage eliminated the risk of human error.

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• Application Note 441: Automated Sampling Using the Bioprocess Autosampler for the Analysis of an E. coli Fermentation Process
• Magazine | BioNews 59 (July 2023)