Microplate readers have become lab benchtop standards, a boon for researchers who require the instruments to quan-a tify chemical reactions using a range of light-detection methods. Their ability to screen entire multiwell plates in seconds affords high-throughput, parallel processing of small sample volumes. But not all microplate readers are equal, and the need for more sensitive instruments has split the market between absorbance readers and those capable of multiple-detection modes, includin

While researchers have long relied on electrophoretic mobility-shift assays (called gel shifts) to identify which transcription factors bind to DNA samples, the method can be time-consuming and requires the use of radiolabeled nucleotide to track protein-DNA complexes.Now Novagen http://www.novagen.com, a brand of San Diego-based EMD Biosciences, is offering a new alternative to gel shifts with its NoShift Transcription Factor Assay Kit. The kit eliminates gels altogether, immobilizing DNA insid

Researchers seeking a new ultraviolet spectrophotometer face no shortage of choices. Since making their first appearance on lab benches more than 60 years ago, UV specs have expanded and morphed into instruments that can handle a breadth of research applications, from the simplest single-wavelength measurements to high-performance, multispectrum analyses. Scientists must therefore keep their laboratories' specific needs in mind when making their choices. Features to consider include the intended

Courtesy of Caliper Life SciencesMaking its latest foray into the microfluidics ring, Hopkinton, Mass.-based Caliper Life Sciences http://www.caliperls.com has introduced the new LabChip 3000 Drug Discovery System, a second-generation tool that builds on the foundation laid by its predecessor, the Caliper 250.Intended for high-throughput drug-detection studies, including a range of assay applications such as kinases, proteases, and phosphatases, the LabChip 3000 is both smaller and easier to use

Courtesy of Cellomics The ArrayScan VTI HCS Reader Microtiter plates have become standard consumables in both research and clinical laboratories. Also known as microwells and microplates, microtiter plates essentially are flat trays bearing a number of isolated reaction chambers, from six to 1,536, and arranged in a 3n x 2n array (e.g., for a 96-well plate, n=4). All the plates share a common footprint (approximately 128 x 86 mm) regardless of manufacturer and configuration, so that robot

NASA offers $330 million to create collaborative institute where academics will work on space agency projects

NASA advisors want more biology aboard space station and international institute to manage research