skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: BioSAXS Sample Changer: a robotic sample changer for rapid and reliable high-throughput X-ray solution scattering experiments

Journal Article · · Acta Crystallographica. Section D: Biological Crystallography
;  [1]; ;  [1];  [1];  [1]; ;  [2]; ;  [3];  [1]
  1. European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Grenoble Outstation, 71 Avenue des Martyrs, CS 90181, 38042 Grenoble (France)
  2. ESRF, 6 Rue Jules Horowitz, 38000 Grenoble (France)
  3. EMBL c/o DESY, Notkestrasse 85, 22603 Hamburg (Germany)

A robotic sample changer for solution X-ray scattering experiments optimized for speed and to use the minimum amount of material has been developed. This system is now in routine use at three high-brilliance European synchrotron sites, each capable of several hundred measurements per day. Small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) of macromolecules in solution is in increasing demand by an ever more diverse research community, both academic and industrial. To better serve user needs, and to allow automated and high-throughput operation, a sample changer (BioSAXS Sample Changer) that is able to perform unattended measurements of up to several hundred samples per day has been developed. The Sample Changer is able to handle and expose sample volumes of down to 5 µl with a measurement/cleaning cycle of under 1 min. The samples are stored in standard 96-well plates and the data are collected in a vacuum-mounted capillary with automated positioning of the solution in the X-ray beam. Fast and efficient capillary cleaning avoids cross-contamination and ensures reproducibility of the measurements. Independent temperature control for the well storage and for the measurement capillary allows the samples to be kept cool while still collecting data at physiological temperatures. The Sample Changer has been installed at three major third-generation synchrotrons: on the BM29 beamline at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF), the P12 beamline at the PETRA-III synchrotron (EMBL@PETRA-III) and the I22/B21 beamlines at Diamond Light Source, with the latter being the first commercial unit supplied by Bruker ASC.

OSTI ID:
22347738
Journal Information:
Acta Crystallographica. Section D: Biological Crystallography, Vol. 71, Issue Pt 1; Other Information: PMCID: PMC4304687; PMID: 25615861; PUBLISHER-ID: ba5229; OAI: oai:pubmedcentral.nih.gov:4304687; Copyright (c) Round et al. 2015; This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licence, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original authors and source are cited.; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0907-4449
Country of Publication:
Denmark
Language:
English