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Build your own: What do I need to get started?Many researchers that come to Cellix have more equipment in their labs than they realize! Take a look around your lab - doing cell-based assays under flow with Cellix’s biochips does not have to mean an expensive investment in capital equipment. |
This is what you need to get started:
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| Biochips |
Vena8TM The Vena8™ biochip is ideal for studying cell receptor-ligand interaction. As cells flow through the microcapillary of the Vena8™ biochip, the cell surface receptors may interact with adhesion molecules or ligands which coat the microcapillary walls.
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VenaECTM In the case of the VenaEC™ biochip, endothelial cells are actually seeded and cultured on one surface of the microcapillary and suspension cells or whole blood, can flow over the endothelial cell monolayer, enabling the user to study cell-cell interaction under conditions mimicking physiological flow.
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| Biochip Frame Holder |
Tell us the make and model of your microscope and we can provide you with a frame that will work with cellix Biochips. |
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| Syringe Pump |
While we recommend Cellix’s patented Mirus NanopumpTM capable of producing incredibly accurate flow rates / shear stresses; many of our existing customers already have a syringe pump in their labs. If this is the case for you, we can provide you with tubing and connections to work with our biochips. |
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| Inverted Microscope |
Compatible with Zeiss, Leica, Nikon, Olympus and many more. |
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| Computer Analysis Software |
We recommend Cellix’s DucoCell but you can also analyse your images with MetaMorph amongst many others. |
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Microscope Cage Incubator(Optional but recommended) |
Many groups we have worked with do not have this item and do their cell-based assays at room temperature or have a heated stage on their microscope. It is recommended to have your cells at 370C while doing your experiment and so we would advise all customers to have some form of heating element included.
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Upgrade Options Include:
Mirus NanopumpTM: Cellix's patented syringe pump capable of delivering incredibly accurate flow rates/shear stresses. This can also be upgraded with theMultiFlow8 (Manifold) so that 8 assays may be run simultaneously in the Vena8 Biochip.
MultiFlow8TM (Manifold): Cellix's manifold enables the flow from the Mirus Nanopump to be split equally into 8 separate tubes to conduct 8 assays simultaneously in the Vena8 Biochip. Only compatible with Mirus Nanopump. Activ-ReflowTM (Recirculation): An addition to Cellix Mirus Nanopump that enables users to recirculate their sample (e.g whole blood) through Cellix's Biochips. Excellent for long term studies over several hours. Only compatible with Mirus Nanopump Inverted Microscope: can also stain/tag your cells for fluoresent imaging. In addition to phase contrast imaging, this option is very often used by researchers staining platelets in whole blood samples. Motorized Stage for Microscope: Motorized stage can be computer controlled and enables scanning of Vena8 Biochip for automated image acquisition. Recommended with manifold with Mirus nanopump. VenaFlux Software: Automated integration of Mirus Nanopump software, motorized stage software and image acquisition through Vena8TM biochip scannng. For more automated options, the VenaFluxTM Platform is ideal. If you would like to find out if your existing equipment is suitable to get started with Cellix's biochips, click here.
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