Reagent Exchanger
Automated Plate Washer
A versatile automated plate washer designed to support a wide range of microplate formats and complex laboratory workflows.
Volume Range
Min: 20 µL
Max: ∞
Self-Cleaning
Up to 3
Cleaning Liquids
Precision
CV 5%
@ 50 µL
Reliable Plate Washer for a Wide Range of Applications and Microplate Formats
The Reagent Exchanger (RX) is a versatile automated washer designed to support a wide range of microplate formats and complex laboratory workflows. It features integrated automation for delidding, plate tilting, dispensing, aspiration, and nozzle cleaning— delivering streamlined, unattended operation. The RX easily integrates with automation platforms and supports robotic reagent loading to maximize efficiency and consistency.
Ease of Use
Simplify liquid handling and reduce setup and operation time with the intuitive design and automated functionality
Automation Friendly
Integrate with automated systems and robotic arms to enhance workflow efficiency and minimize manual intervention
Low Cost Consumables
Reduce costs with affordable SBS-sized troughs and reusable tips that are washed between transfers
Key Features
- High-Throughput, 96-Channel Aspirator Head: Equipped with 96 nozzles for fast, precise, and uniform aspiration across 96- and 384-well plates, supporting high-throughput workflows with maximum efficiency
- Tilting Plate Stage: Enables liquid pooling to optimize aspiration efficiency
- Non-Contact Side-Wall Dispensing: Minimizes fluid shear, preserving the integrity of loosely adherent cells
- Cell Plating: Cells are consistently dispensed into 96- and 384-well plates by maintaining suspension with a stir bar
Media Exchange in a 1-well Plate with Nozzle Cleaning
Media Exchange in a 96-well Plate
- Self-Cleaning System: Integrated wash stations ensure reusable aspirator and dispenser nozzles remain contamination-free
- Interchangeable Troughs: Easily swap reagent reservoirs for flexible, multi-reagent dispensing. Versatile loading options support both automatic and manual loading for seamless operation
- Multiple External Liquid Connections: Supports five external connections, including waste, three wash liquids, and a direct plumbed dispense source for continuous operation
- Integrated Delidder: Compatible with lidded microplates
Efficient Transwell Plate Processing
The RX uniquely enables efficient processing of transwell plates without the need to remove the insert, reducing manual handling and accelerating workflows while maintaining assay integrity.
By automating the aspiration from the basolateral wells before the apical wells, the system effectively manages hydrostatic pressure and prevents the upward force that can delaminate or stress membrane-bound cell layers. This approach, combined with controlled sidewall dispensing into both the apical and basolateral chambers, ensures that delicate monolayers remain undisturbed even during high-throughput workflows. By repeating the dispensing sequence across columns, the RX eliminates variability from manual pipetting, reduces the risk of contamination, and delivers the high reproducibility required for sensitive transwell assays.
Gentle Media Exchange for Sensitive Cells
The RX performs controlled aspiration and gentle side-wall dispensing to protect sensitive, loosely adherent cells during media exchanges. This approach minimizes disturbance to the cell layer and reduces bubble formation and localized cell loss.
To demonstrate this in practice, HEK-293T (loosely adherent) cells were cultured in 8-well plates and subjected to partial media exchange either manually or using the RX system. The RX performs controlled, gentle aspiration followed by slow side-wall dispensing to minimize disturbance to the cell layer. Cell detachment was quantified through pre- and post-feed imaging.
The RX preserved sensitive HEK-293T cells significantly better than manual handling, resulting in only 4.9 ± 1.5% confluency loss, compared to 10.1 ± 2.7% with manual feeding. RX-fed cultures consistently recovered to ~80% confluence with uniform growth. In contrast, manually fed wells showed greater variability, localized cell loss, and bubble formation that interfered with imaging.
RX media exchange reduces cell detachment
Uniform, Reproducible Cell Seeding
The RX dispenses evenly mixed cell suspensions with precise, automated control to deliver uniform, reproducible seeding across every well.
To evaluate seeding consistency at scale, HEK-293T and T47D cell suspensions were prepared in an RX trough with continuous stirring and dispensed into 96-well plates. After 6 hours of incubation, plates were imaged to assess well-to-well confluency and calculate plating uniformity (CV%). Manual controls were seeded using an 8-channel pipette with intermittent mixing.
RX seeding consistently maintained CV values below the 10% uniformity threshold. In contrast, manual seeding approached this limit, demonstrating greater variability. These results highlight improved consistency and more uniform cell distribution with automated dispensing.
RX media exchange improves confluency, reduces bubbles and detachment
Ensure Sterile Operation
The RX supports sterile media exchange when integrated in an automated environment that provides VHP and/or HEPA control and validated decontamination workflows.
In a representative sterile workflow, DMEM/F-12 media was dispensed using the RX integrated within the Cellmatic system following VHP sterilization and fluidic decontamination with 3% H₂O₂, followed by sterile water rinsing. Between media exchanges, fluid lines were flushed with 70% IPA and rinsed with sterile distilled water to minimize carryover.
Daily monitoring of four 96-well plates demonstrated background signals consistently below 5%, indicating no detectable biological contamination. These results confirm that the RX cleaning and decontamination workflow supports reliable, routine sterile cell culture operations.
Cell growth during multi-passage maintenance
No Detectable Cross-Contamination
The RX reduces inter-well carryover by using controlled aspiration/dispense behavior and optional nozzle washing during repeated media exchanges.
To test this under repeated exchange conditions, two fluorescent iPSC lines (red and green) were seeded into defined columns of 96-well plates and subjected to multiple full media exchanges, performed both with and without nozzle washing.
Imaging showed no inter-well fluorescence carryover, with colonies remaining confined to their original wells throughout the experiment. All colonies maintained expected phenotypes and expanded to confluence, demonstrating reliable multi-line co-culture without detectable cross-contamination.
Cross-contamination assessment using fluorescent iPSC culture
