High throughput pipetting robot

• Subject Area: Biological Chemistry and Food Chemistry
• Term: Funded in 2021
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 466915287

Understanding the molecular mechanisms behind disease-related processes in humans requires detailed studies of the macromolecules (proteins and nucleic acids) involved and their interactions inside and outside the cell. For such an understanding, specific small-molecule inhibitors of the macromolecules can be developed, which enable a precise investigation of the processes and can ultimately also serve as starting points for successful drug development. However, this process typically requires many thousands of compounds to be tested.The requested device is a pipetting robot for automated dispensing of very small volumes (as low as 2.5 nL) of various substances in plates for high throughput experiments (96, 384 or 1536 wells). This enables testing of various substances developed in the participating laboratories with regard to their efficacy, and particularly potent compounds can be identified quickly and efficiently. In this way, a wide variety of inhibitors for pathologically relevant proteins or nucleic acids can be identified, thus enabling a thorough investigation of the underlying processes in the cell and ultimately the development of drug canidates. The use of such a device allows a particularly efficient biochemical characterization of the substances to be examined, but can also be used to obtain a better understanding of the mode of binding of the molecules at the atomic level and thus enable further targeted optimization of the previously identified substances.

• DFG Programme: Major Research Instrumentation
• Major Instrumentation: Hochdurchsatz Pipettierroboter
• Instrumentation Group: 1060 Dilutoren, Pipettiergeräte, Probennehmer
• Applicant Institution: Technische Universität Dortmund
• Leader: Professor Dr. Daniel Rauh