Case Study

Charles River Laboratories:
Robust, hassle-free assay development and transfer

How CRL used Synthace to rapidly optimize a biochemical assay directly in a 1536-well plate, and seamlessly transfer it across sites, automation and operators.

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At a glance

12 factors investigated
0.82 z' value of optimized assay
1 experiment to optimise and transfer

CHALLENGES

Time-consuming miniaturization and transfer

The team at CRL wanted to miniaturize a SARS-CoV2 protease assay and easily transfer it across sites and automation platforms. But changing one factor at a time meant that the process took multiple experimental iterations, and ultimately did not result in a robust and reliable assay.

There was a growing need for a faster, data-driven approach.

SOLUTION

Automated DOEs with Synthace

The team at CRL turned to Design of Experiments (DOE) — a robust methodology for investigating multiple variables at a time.

CRL used Synthace's automated DOE software to explore the same DOE design in 2 different labs, at different dates, using two different dispensers. The design investigated 12 factors over 768 runs, directly in a 1536-well format, using fluorescence readout as a response.

Results

Assay miniaturization, simplification, and transfer

Miniaturization and simplification: In one experiment, they were able to miniaturize the assay to a 1536-well format, and remove two reagents from the assay buffer.

Successful assay transfer: Running the same design, in different labs, with different people, and using different dispensers, overall yielded the same results.

"Synthace allows us to conduct more technically demanding experiments."

Gareth Langley
Research Leader at Charles River Laboratories